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FROM  SERBIA  TO 
JUGOSLAVIA 

Serbia's  Victories ^  Reverses  and 
Final  Triumph     ::     1914-1918 

BY 

GORDON  GORDON-SMITH 

WITH   A   PREFACE   BY 

DR.   SLAVKO   GROUITCH 

MINISTER    OF    THE    KINGDOM    OF    THE    SERBS,    CROATS    AND 
SLOVENES    TO    THE    UNITED    STATES 


G.  P.  PUTNAM'S  SONS 

NEW  YORK  AND  LONDON 
1920 


^ 


Copyright,  1920,  by 
G.  P.  PUTNAM'S  SONS 


4- 


FOREWORD 

AS  Secretary  General  of  the  Serbian  Ministry  of 
.  Foreign  Affairs  it  fell  to  my  lot  to  receive  to- 
gether with  the  Acting  Minister  of  Foreign  Affairs, 
Monsieur  L.  Patchou,  the  famous  Austro-Hungarian 
ultimatum,  which  the  Austro-Hungarian  Minister, 
Baron  Giesl  von  Gieslingen,  handed  to  us  on  July  25, 

1914. 

On  that  fateful  day  only  three  Ministers  of  the 
Serbian  Cabinet  were  in  Belgrade.  An  electoral  cam- 
paign was  in  full  swing,  and  all  other  members  of  the 
Cabinet  were  absent  from  the  Capital. 

As  soon  as  the  interview  was  over,  Monsieur 
Patchou  and  myself  hurried  to  an  adjoining  room 
where  the  other  two  members  of  the  Cabinet  were 
waiting  and  began  to  peruse  hastily  the  document 
which  had  just  been  handed  to  us. 

The  first  one  to  break  the  silence  which  followed  the 
reading  of  the  ultimatum  was  the  Minister  of  Public 
Instruction,  Monsieur  L.  Yovanovitch,  who  got  up, 
walked  the  length  of  the  room  and  then  said  in  a  voice 
broken  with  emotion :  "There  remains  nothing  else 
for  us  to  do  but  to  fight  and  to  die." 

These  tragic  words  were  a  summing  up  of  the  ter- 
rible situation  with  which  my  country  had  suddenly 
been  confronted.  The  terms  of  the  ultimatum,  the 
humiliating-  demands  which   it   contained   and    which 


493376 


iv  Foreword 

were  such  as  had  never  before  been  addressed  to  an 
independent  country,  showed  very  clearly  that  they 
had  been  formulated  with  a  view  to  making  it  impos- 
sible for  Serbia  to  accept  them,  and  to  the  end  of  giv- 
ing a  pretext  to  Austria-Hungary  to  declare  war. 

The  Austro-Hungarian  Minister  had  said,  when 
handing  the  ultimatum,  that  his  instructions  were  to 
leave  Belgrade  with  the  personnel  of  his  Legation  at 
the  expiration  of  the  time  limit,  if  by  that  time  the 
Serbian  Government  did  not  return  a  satisfactory  re- 
ply. That  could  mean  only  a  rupture  of  diplomatic 
relations,  and  such  a  rupture  following  such  an  ulti- 
matum could  only  mean  war. 

It  is  only  recently  that  the  most  positive  proofs  have 
been  disclosed  that  xA.ustria-Hungar}^  and  Germany  had 
already  made  up  their  minds  that  whatever  the  con- 
ciliatory reply  of  Serbia  their  monstrous  intention  was 
to  declare  war. 

Nothing  else  indeed  remained  for  Serbia  to  do  but 
to  fight.  She  did  fight,  but  she  did  not  die.  On  the 
contrary  she  emerged  with  renew^ed  vitality,  stronger 
than  ever,  because  of  the  realization  of  the  aspira- 
tions of  all  the  Jugo-Slavs  to  be  united  into  one  King- 
dom. The  allied  victories  of  1918  in  which  Serbia,  as 
the  whole  w^orld  knows,  played  an  important  military 
role,  resulted  in  the  liberation  of  the  Serbs,  Croats, 
and  Slovenes  whom  Austria  had  held  for  a  century 
under  her  cruel  yoke.  Serbia  lived,  but  Austria-Hun- 
gary, who  had  meant  to  strike  a  death  blow  at  her 
small  neighbor,  collapsed. 

Such  a  result  could,   of   course,   never   have  been 


Foreword  v 

achieved  had  Serbia  been  left  to  fight  alone.  But 
even  with  the  later  developments  of  the  conflict  which 
placed  at  her  side  great  and  powerful  allies,  she  is  en- 
titled to  claim  a  most  important  share  in  the  strug- 
gle for  the  common  cause  of  Liberty,  Right,  and  Jus- 
tice. 

This  book  will  show  the  reader  what  that  share  has 
been.  The  writer,  Mr.  Gordon  Gordon-Smith,  whom 
I  had  the  pleasure  of  meeting  in  Nish  during  the  war, 
was  attached  to  the  Serbian  headquarters  and  has  fol- 
lowed personally  and  closely  the  Serbian  campaign. 
This  fact,  coupled  with  Mr.  Gordon-Smith's  previous 
experience  as  war  correspondent,  makes  him  a  very 
valuable  and  able  witness.  I  have  no  doubt  that  the 
reader  will  follow  with  interest  and  profit  the  narra- 
tion of  the  heroic  efforts  which,  after  a  terrible  strug- 
gle against  a  formidable  enemy,  against  typhus, 
starvation,  and  privations  of  all  sorts,  led  the  Serbs 
over  the  snow-covered  mountains  of  Albania,  across 
the  sea  to  Corfu  and  to  Salonika,  from  where,  with 
the  help  of  their  valiant  allies,  they  fought  their  way 
back  to  their  country,  to  Freedom,  and  to  Union  with 
their  brethren  in  the  Kingdom  of  the  Serbs,  Croats, 
and  Slovenes. 

No  less  interest  will  attach  to  the  political  peripe- 
ties  of  the  struggle,  before  and  during  the  war,  which 
Mr.  Gordon-Smith  relates  very  ably  and  with  great  in- 
side knowledge  of  the  facts. 

Some  criticism  will  be  found  concerning  the  atti- 
tude and  policy  of  Serbia's  Allies,  especially  with  re- 
gard to  Bulgaria.     The  desire  of  the  Entente  Powers 


vi  Foreword 

to  get  Bulgaria  on  their  side  was  in  itself  natural. 
But  their  great  mistake  was  to  consider  that,  so  far 
as  Bulgaria's  probable  action  was  concerned,  there 
could  be  only  two  alternatives:  either  that  Bulgaria 
would  side  with  the  Entente,  or  that  she  would  con- 
tinue to  remain  neutral.  The  third  alternative,  which 
actually  happened  and  the  certainty  of  which  we 
Serbians,  knowing  well  our  neighbor  and  her  designs, 
were  constantly  pointing  out,  was  always  dismissed  as 
unbelievable. 

But  notwithstanding  the  consequences  for  Serbia  of 
this  error,  they  have  been  compensated  for  by  the 
unfaltering  aid  which  subsequently  enabled  her  to  ob- 
tain such  a  complete  victory  over  her  enemies  and  to 
realize  her  legitimate  and  long  cherished  aspirations. 

S.   Y.   Grouitch, 
Minister  of  the  Serbs,  Croats  and  Slovenes. 


CONTENTS 

PART  I 

From    the    Danube    to    Durazzo— The    Germano-Austro- 
BuLGARiAN  Attack  on  Serbia 

PAGE 

Foreword iit 

Introduction 5 

CHAPTER 

I.     The  Serbian  Army 23 

II.    The  Austro-German  and  Bulgarian  Armies   .  32 

III.  The  Battle  of  the  Morava 41 

IV.  The  Fall  of  Nish  and  Kraguyevatz     ...  60 
V.    From  Chichevatz  to  Krushevatz     ....  79 

VI.    The  Retreat  Through  the  Mountains      .      .  93 

VII.      KURSHOUMLIA  TO  PrISTINA 107 

VIII.    The  Retreat  of  the  First  Army  from  Kratjevo 

TO  Pristina 117 

IX.    At  Mitrovitza 122 

X.    The  Serbian  Offensive 129 

XI.    The  Last  Days  in  Serbia 142 

XII.    The  March  Across  the  Mountains  OF  Albania  149 

XIII.    At  Scutari 162 

XVI.    Scutari  to  Durazzo 173 

XV.    At  Durazzo 188 

XVI.    The  Evacuation  of  Albania  by  the  Serbian 

Army 19S 

XVII.    The  Serbian  Army  at  Corfu 201 

vii 


viii  Contents 

PART  II 
The  Campaign  on  the  Salonica  Front 

PAGE 

Introduction 211 

CHAPTER 

I.     The  Franco-British  Operations  on  the  Salon- 
ica Front 226 

II.     Reorganization  and  Disembarkment  of  the 

Serbian  Army 240 

III.  Final  Constitution  of  the  Army  of  the  Orient     248 

IV.  The  Salonica  Base 257 

V.    The  Operations— The  First  Phase       ...     266 

VI.    The  Greek  Betrayal  and  the  Salonica  Revo- 
lution     281 

VII.    The  Position  and  Operations  of  the  Second 

Serbian  Army 289 

VIII.     The  Second  Phase  of  the  Operations — The 

Capture  of  Monastir 310 

IX.     The  General  Offensive  of  the  Army  of  the 

Orient 326 


PART  I 

FROM  THE  DANUBE  TO  DURAZZO— THE  GERMANO- 
AUSTRO-BULGARIAN  ATTACK  ON  SERBIA 


to  the  army  of  the 
'nation  that  can  never  die' 

THIS    BOOK    IS    DEDICATED 
BY   THE    AUTHOR 


INTRODUCTION 

IN  the  whole  history  of  the  World- War  there  was 
no  more  tragic  episode  than  the  second  Serbian 
campaign,  a  campaign  which  terminated  in  the  over- 
running, by  Germany  and  her  Allies,  of  the  whole  of 
Serbia. 

It  was  an  episode  tragically  glorious  for  the  armies 
of  King  Peter,  but  one  which  certainly  will  not,  either 
diplomatically  or  militarily,  be  counted  among  the  suc- 
cesses of  the  Quadruple  Alliance.  It  was  characterized, 
on  the  side  of  the  latter,  by  a  series  of  errors  which 
had  as  their  result  the  retreat  into  foreign  territory 
of  the  Serbian  Army  and  the  abandonment  of  the  ill- 
starred  Gallipoli  enterprise,  rendered  hopeless  by  the 
triumph  of  the  Central  Powers  in  the  Balkans. 

In  order  to  have  a  clear  idea  of  the  political  and 
military  consequences  of  the  second  Balkan  campaign 
we  must  study  the  situation  which  existed  at  its 
commencement.  To  completely  understand  this  we 
must  in  turn  go  back  to  the  "beginning  of  things," 
i.e.,  the  political  and  military  constellation  of  the 
Balkan  States  as  the  result  of  the  preceding  wars. 

The  first  of  these  was  the  war  of  the  Balkan  Con- 
federation against  Turkey.  In  the  course  of  the  year 
191 2  the  Balkan  States  achieved  what  had  long  been 
regarded  as  impossible,  the  formation  of  a  League 

5 


6  From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

against  the  common  enemy,  Turkey.  With  this  end  in 
view,  Serbia,  Bulgaria,  Greece  and  Montenegro  signed 
an  offensive  and  defensive  treaty  of  alliance  and  on 
September  30th,  1912,  mobilized  their  armies. 
Twenty-four  hours  later  the  Sultan  also  mobilized  his 
forces.  Exactly  a  week  later  Montenegro  declared  war 
on  Turkey  and  was,  on  October  i8th,  joined  by  her 
Allies. 

After  a  campaign  of  three  months'  duration  the  suc- 
cess of  the  armies  of  the  Balkan  League  was  such  that 
Turkey,  on  December  3rd,  signed  an  armistice  at 
Tchataldja.  A  Peace  Conference  was  held  in  London 
but  no  agreement  could  be  reached  and  hostilities  were 
resumed.  On  April  20th  a  second  armistice  was  nego- 
tiated and  a  fresh  Conference  held  which,  this  time, 
reached  a  successful  conclusion,  the  Treaty  of  London 
being  signed  on  May  30th,  191 3.  The  victory  of  the 
Balkan  League  was  complete,  Turkey  was  practically 
driven  out  of  the  Balkans,  the  Allies  seizing  all  her 
territories  right  up  to  Tchataldja,  a  few  short  miles 
from  Constantinople. 

This  marvellous  result  was  not  received  with  un- 
mixed satisfaction  by  all  the  Great  Powers.  Germany 
and  Austria  regarded  it  with  ill-concealed  displeasure. 
The  latter  State  saw  its  dream  of  extending  its  ter- 
ritories to  the  ^gean  shattered  by  the  seizure  by 
Serbia  of  the  Sandjak  of  Novi  Bazaar,  the  narrow 
tongue  of  Turkish  territory  which  ran  up  to  the 
frontier  of  Bosnia  and  promised  a  path  of  invasion 
when  the  break-up  of  the  Turkish  Empire  should 
offer  an  opportunity  for  Austria  to  realize  her  am- 


Introduction  7 

bitions  of  seizing  Salonica.  Germany  saw  her  com- 
munications with  the  Ottoman  Empire  (which  the 
Kaiser  had  for  twenty  years  been  drawing  more  and 
more  into  the  orbit  of  German  poHtical  ambitions) 
seriously  menaced  by  a  Confederation  of  the  Balkan 
States  and  the  consequent  creation  of  a  military  force 
which  would  be  perfectly  capable,  not  only  of  holding 
its  own  against  Austria-Hungary,  but  of  wringing 
concessions  from  that  country  for  the  freeing  of  the 
sections  of  the  Balkan  race  still  under  the  yoke  of  the 
Dual  Monarchy. 

It  was  clear  both  to  Vienna  and  Berlin,  that  the 
close  union  of  the  Balkan  peoples,  forged  in  "blood 
and  iron"  by  their  brilliant  and  victorious  campaign 
against  Turkey,  must,  at  all  costs,  be  broken  up.  This 
campaign  had  indeed  been  almost  too  successful.  It 
had  succeeded  beyond  the  wildest  hopes  of  the  Con- 
federation, and  the  amount  of  captured  territory  far 
exceeded  its  previsions  and  expectations.  This  was 
the  opportunity  of  the  Central  Powers.  They  at  once 
began  to  intrigue,  to  sow  dissension  among  the  Balkan 
Allies  by  awakening  appetites  and  desires  which  could 
only  be  realized  at  the  expense  of  the  common  peace. 

They  found  a  favourable  terrain  at  Sofia.  The  Bul- 
garian nation,  intoxicated  by  its  victory,  lent  a  willing 
ear  to  the  insidious  counsels  of  the  Ballplatz  and  put 
forward  excessive  claims  for  territorial  concessions  in 
the  conquered  Turkish  Provinces.  These  were  re- 
sisted by  the  Serbians  who  took  their  stand  on  the 
Serbo-Bulgarian  Treaty  of  Alliance  in  which  the  main 
principles  of  the  division  of  the  conquered  territory 


8  From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

were  laid  down.  It  was  further  provided  in  that 
Treaty  that  in  case  of  disagreement,  the  points  in 
dispute  should  be  submitted  to  the  arbitration  of  the 
Tsar  of  Russia,  whose  decision  both  sides  agreed  to 
accept. 

It  soon  became  clear  that  Bulgaria  had  no  intention 
of  fulfilling  this  part  of  her  treaty  obligations,  and 
during  the  negotiations  kept  raising  difficulty  after 
difficulty.  At  the  same  time,  she  kept  secretly  massing 
her  forces  so  as  to  be  in  a  position  of  superiority 
should  there  be  an  appeal  to  armed  force. 

Then  came  the  crowning  act  of  treason.  During 
the  night  of  the  29th  to  30th  June,  1913,  the  Bul- 
garian troops,  without  the  slightest  warning,  made  a 
sudden  attack  on  their  Serbian  and  Greek  Allies. 
Fortunately  for  Serbia  her  soldiers  come  of  a  sturdy 
race,  and  the  first  moment  of  surprise  past,  they 
defended  themselves  with  vigour.  Twenty-four  hours 
later,  both  they  and  the  Greeks,  furious  with  wrath 
at  this  treacherous  attack,  took  the  offensive  in  their 
turn.  Their  generous  indignation  so  fired  their 
courage  that  the  Bulgarians  were  driven  from  position 
after  position.  Bulgaria's  difficulties  became  her 
enemies'  opportunity.  Roumania,  which  had  long 
demanded  a  rectification  of  her  frontier  with  Bulgaria 
and  the  cession  of  the  Dobrudja  province,  took  ad- 
vantage of  her  embarrassments  to  press  her  claims, 
and  when  these  were  resisted,  she  too  mobilized  her 
army,  forcibly  seized  that  province  and  marched  on 
Sofia.   Turkey,  too,  saw  a  chance  of  avenging  at  least 


Introduction  9 

a  part  of  her  defeat,  and  invaded  the  territory  she 
had  just  lost  and  recaptured,  Adrianople. 

Threatened  thus  from  all  sides,  and  with  the 
Roumanian  army  a  few  miles  from  the  gates  of  Sofia, 
Bulgaria  was  forced  to  sue  for  peace,  and  on  August 
6th,  1913,  the  Treaty  of  Bucharest  was  signed,  and 
peace  was  once  more  re-established  in  the  Balkans. 
This  was  interrupted  for  a  few  weeks  by  hostilities 
between  the  Serbians  and  the  Albanians  which  began 
in  September  and  led  to  a  slight  extension  of  the 
Serbian  frontier  in  the  direction  of  Albania. 

But  though  the  Central  Powers  were  thus  disap- 
pointed in  their  expectations  as  to  the  results  of  the 
second  Balkan  War,  they  had  succeeded  in  their  main 
object  which  was  the  breaking  up  of  the  Balkan  Con- 
federation. They  had  sowed  seeds  of  undying  hate 
between  the  Bulgarians  and  the  other  Balkan  States 
and  created,  at  Sofia,  a  new  centre  for  Austro-German 
influence.  The  fashion  in  which  Bulgaria  had  openly 
flouted  the  wishes  of  Russia  and  insulted  the  Tsar  by 
rejecting  his  offices  as  arbiter  between  the  Balkan 
peoples  had  completely  estranged  the  Petrograd  Gov- 
ernment. Bulgaria's  German-born  King  was  known  to 
be  a  zealous  agent  of  German  influence  and  secretly 
hostile  to  the  Powers  of  the  Entente.  So  notorious 
was  this  that  Serbia  and  Greece,  for  their  common 
protection,  signed  a  strictly  defensive  Treaty  of  Al- 
liance, each  undertaking  to  come  to  the  assistance  of 
the  other  if  attacked  by  a  third  Power.  This  treaty  was 
negotiated  by  M.  Boshkovitch  (afterwards  Serbian 
Minister   in   London)    and   M.    Coromilos,    and    was 


10         From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

signed  by  M.  Boshkovitch  and  M.  Venizelos.  Such  was 
the  situation  in  the  Balkans  during  the  months  which 
preceded  the  outbreak  of  the  world-conflict.  It  must 
be  carefully  kept  in  mind,  as  it  explains  much  regard- 
ing the  action  of  the  Central  Powers  and  renders  still 
more  astounding  the  errors  of  the  diplomacy  of  the 
Quadruple  Alliance. 

But  if  outward  peace  reigned  in  the  Balkans  the 
Serbians  had  no  doubt  as  to  the  sentiments  of  the 
Central  Powers,  especially  Austria-Hungary,  towards 
them.  Austria,  which  had  had  nearly  half  her  army 
mobilized  during  the  Balkan  conflict,  was  a  constant 
menace  and  the  Belgrade  Government  knew  that  an  at- 
tack from  that  side  was  daily  becoming  more  and  more 
probable,  an  attack  which  everyone  saw  would  be  the 
signal  for  a  general  European  conflagration.  All  that 
was  wanting  was  the  pretext.  This  was  found  in  the 
assassination  on  June  28th,  1914,  at  Sarajevo,  the 
capital  of  Bosnia,  of  the  Archduke  Franz  Ferdinand. 
This  was  alleged  by  Austria  to  have  been  plotted  in 
Belgrade  with  the  knowledge  and  connivance  of  Serb- 
ian officials.  Then  followed  the  famous  ultimatum, 
probably  the  most  insolent  diplomatic  document  ever 
penned,  presented  by  the  Austrian  Minister  at  Bel- 
grade to  King  Peter's  Government.  It  was  clear  that 
it  was  not  meant  to  be  accepted.  Germany  and  Austria 
had  decided  that  the  hour  for  the  war  they  had  long 
been  plotting  had  struck.  The  action  of  the  Ballplatz 
was  merely  intended  to  declancher  le  mouvement. 

The   declaration   of    war   by   Austria-Hungary   on 


Introduction  ii 

July  28th,  191 4,  was  immediately  followed  by  an 
attempt  to  invade  Serbia. 

From  the  very  first  the  inability  of  the  Austrians 
to  overcome  the  resistance  of  the  Serbs  was  manifest. 
All  their  attempts  to  cross  the  Danube  and  the  Save 
were  repulsed.  It  was  only  when  they  made  a  further 
attempt  from  the  Bosnian  side  of  the  Save  that  they 
succeeded  in  passing  on  to  Serbian  territory  and  cap- 
tured Shabatz.  But  their  success  was  shortlived.  A 
few  days  later,  by  the  battle  of  Tzer  the  Serbs  drove 
back  the  invaders  and  hurled  them  in  confusion  across 
the  Save  and  Drina. 

Unfortunately  for  Serbia  this  effort  exhausted  their 
stock  of  munitions.  When  the  Austrians  realized  this 
they  returned  to  the  attack.  As  the  Serbs  were  without 
shells  for  their  artillery  or  cartridges  for  their  rifles 
they  were  forced  to  give  way  and  had  to  retreat  from 
north-western  Serbia  to  Rudnik.  This  entailed  the 
evacuation  of  Belgrade.  This  discouraged  the  army 
and  thousands  of  men  returned  to  their  homes.  At 
the  psychological  moment,  however,  the  Allies  were 
able  to  come  to  the  aid  of  the  Serbs  and  reprovision 
them  with  munitions.  Instantly  the  whole  situation 
changed.  The  Serbian  Army  under  Field-Marshal 
Mishitch  (who  showed  on  this  occasion  a  great  spirit 
of  initiation  and  decision)  had  shrunk  to  less  than  one 
hundred  thousand  men.  They  attacked  the  400,000 
Austrians  on  the  Rudnik-Souvobor  line  with  such 
vigour  that  they  hurled  them  back  In  confusion.  In 
a  few  days  Serbian  territory  was  cleared  of  the  Aus- 
trians.   A  proof  of  the  national  spirit  was  seen  in  the 


12         From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

fact  that  the  army,  which  was  less  than  one  hundred 
thousand  strong  when  it  began  the  attack,  counted  a 
quarter  of  a  milHon  bayonets  by  the  time  it  reached 
the  Drina,  the  Serbian  peasants  streaming  back  to  the 
colours  the  instant  they  heard  that  munitions  had 
arrived.  Over  60,000  prisoners  were  taken  by  the 
Serbs,  together  with  an  immense  amount  of  war 
material,  guns,  munitions,  pontoon  trains,  field  tele- 
graph material,  baggage  train,  food  stuffs  and  war 
stores  of  every  kind. 

So  complete  was  the  catastrophe  that  the  Austrians, 
for  the  time  being,  abandoned  all  further  attack  on 
Serbia  and  that  country  could  enjoy  a  much  needed 
period  of  comparative  repose.  But  the  trials  of  the 
nation  were  not  yet  at  an  end.  An  epidemic  of  typhus, 
which  had  broken  out  among  the  Austrian  troops  at 
Valjevo  during  the  occupation,  began  to  spread  all 
over  the  country.  The  Serbian  soldiers,  exhausted  by 
three  years'  campaigning,  fell  victims  to  it  by  thou- 
sands. In  the  towns  and  villages,  crowded  with  fugi- 
tives from  the  invaded  districts,  the  disease  made 
frightful  ravages.  It  was  the  terrible  variety  known 
as  spotted  typhus.  The  existing  sanitary  organizations 
proved  utterly  unable  to  cope  with  the  outbreak.  Hun- 
dreds died  on  public  roads  and  in  the  streets  of  towns, 
in  fact,  scenes  were  witnessed  such  as  had  not  been 
chronicled  since  the  outbreaks  of  the  Black  Death  in 
the  Middle  Ages. 

The  Serbian  Government  appealed  for  aid  to  their 
AlHes,  who  responded  nobly  to  their  call.  France, 
Britain  and  Russia  sent  hundreds  of  Red  Cross  Units. 


Introduction  13 

The  Scottish  Women's  Ambulance,  and  the  organiza- 
tions under  Lady  Paget,  Mrs.  Hankin  Hardy,  Dr. 
and  Mrs.  Berry  and  Mrs.  St.  Clair  Stobart  worked 
night  and  day  among  the  stricken  people.  They  fought 
the  outbreak  foot  by  foot  with  admirable  courage. 
Many  doctors  and  nurses  fell  victims  to  their  devotion. 
But  science  and  heroism  prevailed.  Slowly  but  surely 
the  number  of  cases  diminished,  and  by  the  end  of 
April  the  last  traces  of  the  epidemic  had  been  stamped 
out.  But  the  toll  of  victms  was  enormous,  over  70,000 
succumbing  to  the  terrible  scourge,  and  this  in  a  coun- 
try whose  population  had  died  by  tens  of  thousands  in 
three  years  of  ceaseless  war. 

Meanwhile  the  war  was  being  continued  with  un- 
diminished vigour  on  other  European  fronts.  In 
France,  after  the  victory  of  the  Marne,  the  Germans 
had  "dug  themselves  in."  A  line  of  trenches  such  as 
the  world  has  never  seen,  had  been  constructed  from 
the  North  Sea  to  the  Swiss  frontier.  These  were 
manned  by  two  million  men  on  either  side  and  the 
position  reduced  to  one  of  "stalemate." 

(That  this  was  so  was  proved  by  the  failure  of  the 
efforts  made  by  both  sides  to  break  through  their 
opponent's  lines.  The  German  attack  at  Ypres  had 
as  its  only  result  the  practical  annihilation  of  the 
Corps  of  Prussian  Guards.  The  British  attempts  to 
break  through  the  German  lines  at  Neuve  Chapelle  and 
Loos  did  not  completely  succeed.  The  French  attack 
in  Champagne,  though  made  after  weeks  of  careful 
preparation,  only  resulted  in  the  capture  of  a  few 
square  miles  of  territory.    The  Germans  were  driven 


14         From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

back  but  their  line  remained  unbroken.  The  German 
attempt  to  force  the  French  lines  at  Verdun  was 
equally  unsuccessful,  though  preceded  by  a  preparation 
in  which  every  expedient  known  to  military  science 
was  used.) 

On  the  Austro-Italian  frontier  a  similar  situation 
existed.  After  months  of  tireless  effort  the  Italian 
Army  had  not  advanced  twenty  miles  into  the  enemy's 
country.  The  French  and  Italian  lines  of  trenches 
were  linked  up  by  the  formidable  line  of  fortifications 
which  the  Swiss  Army  had  thrown  up  to  discourage 
any  attempt  on  the  part  of  France  or  Germany  to 
reach  each  other  across  the  territory  of  the  Con- 
federation. An  uninterrupted  line  of  trenches,  there- 
fore, ran  from  the  North  Sea  to  the  Adriatic. 

On  the  other  side  of  the  Adriatic  the  line  of  defence 
of  the  Allies  was  continued  by  Montenegro  and  Serbia 
to  the  point  where  vSerbian  territory  reached  the 
Roumanian  frontier.  Roumania,  though  neutral  in  the 
struggle,  had,  like  Switzerland,  practically  mobilized 
her  army  since  the  beginning  of  the  war,  and  fortified 
her  frontiers  from  end  to  end. 

On  the  other  side  of  Roumania  began  the  Russian 
line  of  entrenchments  running  from  Bessarabia  to  the 
Baltic.  Germany  and  Austria  were  thus  surrounded  by 
a  circle  of  steel  on  which  bristled  ten  million  bayonets. 
It  was  for  the  Central  Powers  a  question  of  life  and 
death  to  break  this  encerclement  which  was  slowly 
but  surely  strangling  them.  France,  Italy  and  Russia 
(in  spite  of  a  momentary  German  success  in  the  latter 
country,  which  has  only  had  the  effect  of  widening, 


Introduction  15 

but  not  breaking  the  circle)  were  daily  increasing  the 
pressure.  Turkey,  cut  off  from  all  communication 
with  the  Central  Powers  and  from  the  outside  world, 
was  daily  in  danger  of  collapse.  This  would  have 
meant  the  fall  of  Constantinople,  the  opening  of  the 
Dardanelles,  and  the  reprovisioning  of  Russia  with 
munitions  and  war  stores  of  all  kinds,  the  want  of 
which  had  rendered  possible  the  momentary  success  of 
Austro-German  arms  in  Poland. 

It  was  clear  to  the  meanest  intelligence  that  the 
prevention  of  this  was  a  vital  question  for  the  Central 
Powers.  The  Ottoman  Government  was  running  short 
of  munitions,  and  if  the  supply  was  not  renewed  the 
success  of  the  attack  on  the  peninsula  of  Gallipoli 
was  certain.  With  the  entry  of  the  British  Fleet  into 
the  Sea  of  Marmora  the  fate  of  Constantinople  was 
sealed. 

In  order  to  prevent  this  Germany  and  Austria,  in 
the  spring  of  191 5,  began  to  mass  troops  in  Hungary 
with  a  view  to  forcing  their  way  through  Serbia  to 
Constantinople.  In  the  month  of  July  the  French 
aviation  service  attached  to  the  Serbian  Army  reported 
the  commencement  of  this  concentration.  The  Bel- 
grade Government  saw  the  danger.  The  military  posi- 
tion in  Serbia,  in  spite  of  the  fact  that  every  instant 
of  the  six  months'  respite  from  actual  warfare  had 
been  utilized  to  rest  and  recruit  the  army,  to  call  out 
and  train  the  new  "classe,"  to  refill  the  depleted 
arsenals,  and  to  accumulate  food  stuffs  and  war  stores 
of  all  kinds,  was  a  critical  one. 

When,  therefore,  in  July,  191 5,  It  became  evident 


i6         From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

that  the  country  was  threatened  with  a  fresh  attack 
and  that  this  time  the  Austrian  Army  was  to  be 
reinforced  by  German  troops,  the  Serbian  Govern- 
ment was  of  opinion  that  it  could  no  longer  resist 
the  aggression  single-handed.  It  therefore  appealed  to 
the  Allies  for  help. 

It  is  from  this  moment  that  the  greatest  military 
and  diplomatic  failure  made  by  the  Allies  in  the 
present  war  dates.  Instead  of  themselves  sending  the 
military  aid  demanded  by  the  Serbians,  the  Russian, 
British  and  French  Governments  declared  they  would 
obtain  this  from  Bulgaria.  This  reply  caused  con- 
sternation in  Serbia.  It  was  in  vain,  however,  that  M. 
Pashitch  and  his  colleagues  pointed  out  that  Bulgaria 
was  their  worst  enemy,  that  she  had  at  the  instigation 
of  Austria  and  Germany,  neutralized  the  effects  of  the 
victorious  war  against  Turkey,  by  abandoning  her 
Greek  and  Serbian  allies,  and  had  treacherously  tried 
to  stab  them  in  the  back;  their  objections  were  brushed 
aside  and  the  Allies  began  negotiations  with  the  Sofia 
Government.  Serbia  was  tO'  be  left  to  defend  the 
Danube  against  the  coming  Austro-German  invasion 
while  Bulgaria  was  to  be  induced  to  march  on  Con- 
stantinople as  the  ally  of  the  Entente  Powers. 

In  order  to  get  Bulgaria  to  do  this  the  Allies  offered 
to  obtain  for  her  from  the  Bucharest  Government 
the  retrocession  of  the  Dobrudja  Province,  wrested 
from  her  by  Roumania,  after  her  defeat  by  Serbia 
and  Greece;  from  Serbia,  a  large  portion  of  Mace- 
donia and  the  cession  by  Greece  of  the  towns  of 
Cavalla,  Drama  and  Seres.    If  the  Allies  had  desired 


Introduction  17 

to  deliberately  cool  all  enthusiasm  for  their  cause  in 
these  States  they  would  not  have  proceeded  otherwise. 
M.  Radoslavoff,  the  astute  Bulgarian  Premier,  pre- 
tended that  a  basis  of  settlement  might  be  found  on 
these  lines  and  embarked  on  a  series  of  deliberately 
long  drawn-out  negotiations. 

It  was  at  this  moment  that  I  left  Switzerland,  where 
I  then  had  been  following  the  progress  of  the  French 
campaign  in  Alsace,  for  the  Serbian  capital  which  had 
been  temporarily  established  at  Nish.  En  route  I 
stopped  at  Rome  to  see  M.  Coromilos,  the  Greek 
Minister  to  the  Ouirinal.  M.  Coromilos  had  been 
Minister  of  Foreign  Affairs  during  the  war  with' 
Turkey  and  during  the  Greco-Serbo-Bulgarian  War 
which  followed  it.  He  it  was  who  negotiated  the 
famous  treaty  creating  the  Balkan  League,  which  made 
the  victory  over  Turkey  possible,  and  later,  the  Greco- 
Serbian  Treaty  which  Greece  failed  to  observe  when 
the  occasion  arose.  He  has  a  knowledge  of  Balkan 
affairs  such  as  few  European  statesmen  possess. 

I  found  him  aghast  at  the  policy  being  pursued  by 
the  Allies.  "What  does  it  all  mean?"  he  asked  me. 
"We  know  beyond  a  shadow  of  a  doubt  that  Bulgaria 
is  pledged  up  to  the  hilt  to  the  Central  Powers.  She 
has  asked  and  obtained  from  them  a  loan  of  250,000,- 
000  francs  in  gold ;  she  has  come  to  terms  with 
Turkey,  the  Power  the  Allies  expect  her  to  attack ;  and 
has  received  from  her  a  cession  of  territory.  She  is, 
to  our  certain  knowledge,  preparing  night  and  day  for 
war.  We  keep  sending  dispatch  after  dispatch,  tele- 
gram after  telegram  to  this  effect  to  London,  Paris 


l8         From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

and  Petrograd.  The  Serbian  and  Roumanian  Govern- 
ments are  doing  the  same,  but  nothing  we  can  say  or 
do  has  the  slightest  effect.  The  Allies  inform  us  that 
Bulgaria  is  the  most  loyal,  honest  and  upright  nation 
in  the  world,  and  that  her  support  of  their  cause  is 
beyond  all  question.  We  know  that  the  contrary  is 
the  case,  but  MM.  Sazonoff,  Delcasse  and  Sir  Edward 
Grey  turn  a  deaf  ear  to  all  we  say.  It  is  the  most 
extraordinary  situation  I  have  ever  seen  and  can  only 
end  in  disaster." 

Ten  days  later  I  saw  M.  Venizelos  in  Athens  and 
he  confirmed  every  word  M.  Coromilos  had  said. 
"We  are  completely  at  a  loss,"  he  declared,  "to  under- 
stand the  aberration  of  the  Allies.  But  to  all  the 
Balkan  Governments  tell  them  they  turn  a  deaf  ear. 
They  drag  on  negotiations  with  our  worst  enemies 
when  a  child  could  see  that  they  are  being  fooled  by 
the  wily  Bulgarian  Premier,  who  is  acting  under 
orders  from  Berlin  and  Vienna.  He  is  dragging  out 
the  pretended  negotiations  in  order  to  give  the  Central 
Powers  time  to  concentrate  their  armies  against 
Serbia." 

When  I  reached  Nish  I  found  that  consternation 
reigned.  The  Government  was  in  despair  at  the  dip- 
lomatic action  of  the  Allies.  Then  the  moment  arrived 
when,  the  Austro-German  armies  being  concentrated, 
Bulgaria  threw  off  the  mask  and  mobilized  her  army. 
And  then  came  the  crowning  error  of  the  Allies. 
Field-Marshal  Putnik,  the  Chief  of  Staff  of  the 
Serbian  Army,  telegraphed  to  London,  Paris  and  Pet- 
rograd asking  permission  to  march  the  Serbian  army 


Introduction  19 

across  the  frontier  and  attack  the  Bulgarians  before 
they  had  completed  their  concentration.  He  declared 
the  Serbian  Army  would  be  in  Sofia  in  five  days.  Bul- 
garia being  disposed  of,  Serbia  could  then  turn  her  full 
strength  against  Austria  and  Germany. 

Not  only  was  permission  refused  but  it  was  declared 
that  the  Allies  had  the  astonishing  conviction  that  the 
Bulgarian  mobilization  was  not  directed  against  her 
and  she  was  warned  that  if  she  broke  the  Balkan  Peace 
she  would  do  so  at  her  own  risk  and  peril.  On  receiv- 
ing this  extraordinary  communication,  M.  Pashitch, 
the  Serbian  Premier,  in  his  loyalty  to  the  Quadruple 
Entente,  showed  himself  even  plus  royaUste  que  le  roi 
and  ordered  the  Serbian  Army,  in  order  to  avoid 
all  danger  of  a  Serbo-Bulgarian  "incident,"  to  with- 
draw five  kilometres  from  the  Bulgarian  frontier 
(thereby  giving  up  the  important  position  of  Saint 
Nicholas  which  the  Bulgarians  occupied  without  firing 
a  shot)  and  announced  that  any  Serbian  officer  who 
should  provoke  any  frontier  incident  would  be  piti- 
lessly shot.  Having  thus  tied  the  unfortunate  Serbia 
hand  and  foot  the  Allies  looked  on  helplessly  while 
the  Central  Powers  and  their  Bulgarian  ally  pro- 
ceeded to  cut  her  throat. 

A  week  later  came  the  inevitable  crash.  Three 
hundred  thousand  Austro-German  troops  began  a 
tremendous  attack  upon  the  Danube  front,  while  four 
hundred  thousand  Bulgarians  were  hurled  across  the 
western  frontier.  Field-Marshal  Putnik  with  his  two 
hundred  and  fifty  thousand  Serbs  performed  prodigies 
of  valour.   For  two  long  months  he  faced  overwhelm- 


20       >  From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

ing  odds.  Cut  off  from  all  communication  with  the 
outside  world  the  Serbs  fought  with  the  courage  of 
despair.  But  human  strength  has  its  limits  and  on 
November  24th,  all  that  remained  of  King  Peter's 
army  left  Serbian  territory  and  began  its  fateful 
march  across  the  mountains  into  Albania.  The  tri- 
umphant invaders  were  masters  of  Serbia.  Direct 
communication  was  established  between  Berlin  and 
Constantinople  and  thousands  of  tons  of  ammunition 
were  poured  into  Turkey.  The  first  result  of  this 
was  the  abandonment  by  the  Allies  of  the  now  hopeless 
enterprise  in  the  Dardanelles.  A  month  later  Monte- 
negro fell,  Albania  was  invaded,  and  the  remnants  of 
the  Serbian  Army  driven  to  take  refuge  in  Corfu. 

Such  were  the  fruits  of  the  incredible  errors  of  the 
diplomacy  of  the  Allies.  The  Salonica  expedition, 
as  far  as  the  saving  of  Serbia  was  concerned,  was 
foredoomed  to  failure  from  the  first.  It  was  la 
moutarde  apres  le  diner,  as  our  French  friends  would 
say. 

But  it  is  when  we  consider  what  would  have 
happened  if  the  Allies  had  listened  tO'  the  counsels  of 
the  Balkan  Governments  that  the  colossal  nature  of  the 
errors  committed  becomes  apparent.  As  far  back  as 
July,  when  the  Austro-German  menace  first  became 
apparent,  the  Serbian  Government  urged  the  Allies  to 
send  a  quarter  of  a  million  men  tO'  the  Danube  front. 
If  this  had  been  done  the  Austro-German  armies 
would  have  found  themselves  opposed  by  half  a  mil- 
lion men  (250,000  Anglo-French  troops  and  250,000 
Serbs).    With  such  a  guarantee  Roumania  would  at 


Introduction  21 

once  have  come  into  the  war  on  the  side  of  the 
Entente.  This  assurance  was  given  M.  Pashitch,  the 
Serbian  Premier,  in  the  spring  of  19 15  by  M.  Bratiano, 
the  Roumanian  Prime  Minister.  This  would  have 
meant  an  additional  600,000  men  at  the  disposal  of  the 
Allies,  making  a  total  of  eleven  hundred  thousand 
bayonets  on  the  Danube  front.  Under  these  circum- 
stances M.  Venizelos,  who'  was  then  in  power,  would 
have  forced  King  Constantine's  hand  and  300,000 
Greeks  would  have  swelled  the  forces  of  the  Allies. 

If  this  had  taken  place,  Bulgaria  would  not  have 
dared  to  move,  or,  if  she  had,  would  have  been  dis- 
posed of  at  short  notice.  The  result  would  have  been 
the  creation  of  a  fourth  front  for  the  Central  Powers 
which  they  could  not  have  defended  with  less  than 
a  million  men.  And  these  they  had  not  got.  Then 
would  have  followed  the  march  across  the  Hungarian 
pusta  to  Budapest. 

Once  the  Allies  were  in  possession  of  the  Hungarian 
capital  the  position  of  the  Austrian  Army  facing  the 
Italians  in  the  Trentino  would  have  become  untenable. 
The  Italian  Army  would  have  poured  across  into  Aus- 
trian territory.  With  Vienna  menaced  from  two  sides 
Austrian  resistance  would  have  been  broken  and  Ger- 
many would  have  been  face  to  face,  single-handed, 
with  Europe  in  arms,  and  defeat  in  a  few  weeks  or  at 
most  months  would  have  been  certain. 

That  this  result  was  not  achieved  is  due  to  the 
fact  that  the  diplomats  of  the  Allies  allowed  them- 
selves to  be  deceived  by  an  astute  politican  like  M. 
Radoslavoff     and     his     unscrupulous     German-born 


22         From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

sovereign.  One  of  the  bravest  and  most  liberty-loving 
nations  of  Europe  was,  for  the  time  being  at  least, 
wiped  out  of  existence  and  abandoned  to  the  horrors 
of  invasion  and  occupation.  The  French  nation  at 
once  drew  the  logical  conclusion  from  the  errors  com- 
mitted. M.  Delcasse,  the  French  Foreign  Minister, 
resigned.  But  this  did  not  satisfy  the  French  parlia- 
ment and  the  Viviani  Ministry,  as  the  result  of  the 
errors  of  the  Balkan  policy,  was  driven  from  power. 
But  strange  to  say  no  such  fate  overtook  the  British 
cabinet  which  continued  in  office  perpetuating  the 
errors  it  had  made  in  Serbia  by  its  handling  of  King 
Constantine  and  the  Athens  Government. 


CHAPTER  I 


THE   SERBIAN    ARMY 


THE  Serbian  Army  at  the  outljreak  of  the  second 
campaign  consisted  of  about  250,000  men.  It 
was  divided  into  five  armies.  The  First  Army  was 
under  the  command  of  the  Voivode,  or  Field-Marshal, 
Zhivoin  Mishitch,  the  Second  under  the  Voivode 
Stepanovitch,  the  Third  under  General  Yurishitch- 
Sturm,  the  Defence  of  Belgrade  under  General  Zhivko- 
vitch  and  the  Troops  of  the  New  Territories  (with 
centre  at  Uskub)  under  General  Petar  Boyovitch. 

The  composition  of  these  armies  varied  according 
to  circumstances,  divisions  being  transported  from 
one  army  to  the  other  as  necessity  arose.  Thus  the 
famous  Division  of  the  Shumadia  (so-called  because  it 
was  recruited  in  the  country  of  that  name)  commanded 
by  Colonel  Bozha  Terzitch  (afterwards  Serbian 
Minister  of  War)  at  the  beginning  of  the  campaign 
formed  part  of  the  Second  Army.  Later  it  was  trans- 
ferred to  the  Third  Army,  and  finally,  toward  the 
end  of  October,  was  sent  to  join  the  Defence  of  Bel- 
grade. Each  active  Division  (First  "Ban")  had  its 
divisions  of  reserve  known  as  Second  and  Third 
"Ban." 

The  recruiting  of  the   Serbian   Army  was  purely 


24         From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

territorial,  the  men  of  the  Defence  of  Belgrade  being 
drawn  from  the  capital  and  the  environs,  those  of  the 
Division  of  Shumadia  from  the  country  of  Shumadia, 
the  Division  of  the  Danube  from  the  country  on  that 
river,  the  Division  of  Timok  from  the  province  of  that 
name  on  the  Roumanian  frontier,  etc.  The  men  of  a 
company  often  came  from  the  same  village  and  a  regi- 
ment from  the  same  district.  The  only  exception  to 
this  rule  was  the  Combined  Division  (commanded  by 
General  M.  Rashitch)  which  was  composed,  as  its 
name  implies,  of  men  from  every  part  of  Serbia.  It 
was  counted  as  one  of  the  corps  d'elite  of  the  Serbian 
Army. 

This  system  of  recruiting  the  army  made  for  great 
cohesion  among  the  troops,  as  the  men,  being  closely 
allied  by  race  and  in  many  instances  blood  relations, 
stood  shoulder  to  shoulder  in  moments  of  stress  and 
danger  in  a  manner  they  might  not  do  if  drawn 
together  from  far  distant  provinces.  It  further  allowed 
of  speedy  mobilization  in  a  country  none  too  well  pro- 
vided with  railways  and  other  means  of  rapid  trans- 
port and  concentration. 

The  system,  at  the  same  time,  had  its  drawbacks. 
Serbia  is  essentially  a  country  of  peasant  proprietors, 
and  the  Serbian  Army  is  to  an  overwhelming  degree 
a  peasant  army.  A  peasant  army  has  always  a  double 
patriotism,  one  local,  the  other  national.  As  long  as 
his  farm  lies  behind  him  the  Serbian  peasant  fights  like 
a  lion,  but  once  he  is  being  forced  to  retreat  beyond  it 
and  it  is  in  the  occupation  of  the  enemy,  half  his 
interest  in  the  struggle  is  gone.   I  do  not  for  a  moment 


The  Serbian  Army  25 

mean  to  say  that  he  ceases  to  fight  bravely,  as  his 
national  patriotism  is  also  very  great,  but  there  is  a 
diminution  in  his  elan.  That  is  why  the  tactics  im- 
posed on  the  Serbian  General  Staff  by  the  Allies,  after 
the  Austro-German  forces  crossed  the  Danube,  were 
the  worst  possible  for  such  an  army.  Their  instruc- 
tions were  that  Field-Marshal  Putnik  should  keep  con- 
tact with  the  enemy  and  delay  their  advance  as  much 
as  possible  in  order  to  give  the  xA.llies  in  Salonica  time 
to  come  to  his  assistance.  In  other  words,  they  were 
to  try  a  Serbian  repetition  of  the  tactics  of  General 
Joffre  before  the  victory  of  the  Marne.  They  were 
warned  on  no  account  to  risk  everything  on  a  pitched 
battle. 

These  were  tactics  entirely  foreign  to  the  nature  of 
the  Serbian  soldier.  He  is  eminently  suited  for  the 
attack.  He  is  most  formidable  with  the  "bayonet  and 
the  butt"  and  has  little  comprehension  of  the  neces- 
sities of  tactics  and  strategy.  When  he  sees  one  posi- 
tion after  another  being  abandoned  for  strategic 
reasons  and  mile  after  mile  of  territory  falling  into  the 
hands  of  the  invader  he  becomes  discouraged.  He  still 
fights  bravely  (up  to  the  very  last  the  Serbs  fought 
with  courage),  but  his  clan  and  his  enthusiasm  are 
damped.  The  Serbian  Staff  faithfully  followed  the 
counsels  of  the  Allies  from  Belgrade  to  Pristina,  that 
is  to  say,  they  retreated,  facing  triple  odds,  perform- 
ing prodigies  of  valour  for  nearly  two  months,  and  at 
the  end  of  that  time  the  Allies  at  Salonica  were  as 
unable  to  come  to  their  assistance  as  the  first  day. 

The   Serbian   soldier  possesses   a   strong   dash   of 


26         From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

Oriental  fatalism,  a  heritage,  probably,  of  five  hundred 
years  of  Turkish  rule.  This  enables  him  to  bear  up 
under  circumstances  which  would  discourage  many 
European  troops.  He  is  docile  and  easily  accepts  mili- 
tary discipline.  In  physique  the  Serbs  are  a  strong 
and  sturdy  race  and  accept  uncomplainingly  privations 
such  as  would  drive  other  armies  to  revolt  or  despair. 
They  content  themselves  with  the  simplest  fare  (I 
have  seen  men  marching  and  fighting  for  days  on  a 
few  cobs  of  raw  maize  and  a  raw  cabbage  or  two), 
and  have  marvellous  powers  of  resistance  to  climatic 
conditions,  supporting  equally  well  extremes  of  heat 
and  cold. 

But  what  distinguished  the  Serbian  Army  from  all 
others  was  its  methods  of  transport.  The  roads,  or 
rather  the  want  of  them,  rendered  automobile  and 
even  horse-drawn  transport  out  of  the  question.  The 
patient  ox  was  the  pivot  of  everything  in  the  Serbian 
Army.  The  baggage  wagons,  the  pontoon  train  and 
the  artillery,  even  the  field  guns,  were  for  the  most  part 
ox-drawn.  Nothing  else  could  get  through  the  seas  of 
mud  en  evidence  everywhere  after  any  rainfall.  As 
the  existing  railways  were  all  single  track  they  did  not 
render  the  same  services  as  the  double-track  railways 
in  other  countries.  The  burden  thrown  on  wheeled 
transport  was  therefore  much  greater  than  elsewhere. 

As  it  is  the  ox  that  sets  the  pace  the  marching  speed 
of  the  Serbian  Army  is  painfully  slow,  from  two  and 
a  half  to  three  miles  an  hour.  When  field  batteries 
are  drawn  by  bullocks  the  development  of  a  battle  is 
a  very  slow  affair.   There  are  no  horse  batteries  chang- 


The  Serbian  Army  27 

ing-  position  at  the  gallop  or  thundering  along  the 
roads.  But  as  the  enemy,  as  soon  as  he  enters  Serbian 
territory,  must  also  abandon  horse  traction  if  he 
desires  to  make  any  progress  at  all  everybody  is  on  an 
equal  footing. 

The  Army  Service  Corps  was  made  up  of  peasants' 
carts,  requisitioned  by  the  military  authorities.  They 
were  all  sorts  and  sizes,  some  in  good  repair,  others 
threatening  ruin  or  appearing  to  do  so.  Some  had 
four  oxen  and  some  had  two.  Some  had  tilts,  others 
had  none,  or  mere  apologies  for  covers  in  tattered 
canvas.  The  "Komordji,"  or  drivers,  rarely  wore  any 
uniform  beyond  the  Serbian  military  cap,  but  tramped 
alongside  their  teams  in  the  russet-brown  homespun 
costume  universally  worn.  Many  of  the  men  had  been 
out  with  their  teams  since  the  first  Turkish  War  and 
had  tramped  in  rain  and  shine,  in  summer  heat  and 
winter  cold,  from  the  plains  of  Thrace  to  the  frontiers 
of  Hungary.  They  had  all  left  their  farms  to  be  cul- 
tivated by  their  wives  and  children,  whom  they  had 
not  seen  for  many  a  weary  month. 

But  in  spite  of  the  patriarchal  appearance  given  to 
a  Siberian  army  on  the  march  by  the  thousands  of  ox- 
wagons,  the  droves  of  sheep  and  the  countless  vehicles 
piled  high  with  hay  and  straw,  it  is  an  admirable  fight- 
ing machine,  and  could  hold  its  own,  in  its  own  coun- 
try, against  the  most  up-to-date  adversary. 

Its  staff  officers  are  well  trained  and  have  learnt 
their  metier  in  the  armies  of  France,  Germany  or 
Russia.  They  are  well-equipped  and  admirably 
mounted  and  do  their  work  in  smart  and  business- 


28         From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

like  fashion.  The  regimental  officers  are  also  well- 
trained,  though  many  belong  to  the  peasant  class. 
There  is  certainly  no  more  democratic  army  in  Europe, 
and  in  Serbia  it  is  certain  that  every  soldier  "carries 
his  marshal's  baton  in  his  knapsack." 

The  Commander-in-Chief  was  Prince  Alexander, 
Crown  Prince  and  Prince  Regent.  For  some  months 
past  the  health  of  the  aged  King  had  prevented  him 
exercising  active  command.  But  His  Majesty  was 
heart  and  soul  with  his  troops,  and  made  a  point  of 
moving  everywhere  with  the  army  to  encourage  them 
by  his  presence.  Wherever  he  went  he  was  received 
with  boundless  enthusiasm.  His  courage  and  absolute 
indifference  to  danger  excited  general  admiration.  He 
was  constantly  to  be  found  where  the  shells  were 
falling  thickest.  It  is  certainly  no  sinecure  to  be  an 
officer  of  King  Peter's  suite. 

Prince  Alexander  came  only  second  to  his  father 
in  the  affection  of  the  Army.  Though  then  only 
twenty-seven  years  of  age  he  was  already  a  veteran, 
having  learnt  his  metier  in  three  successive  wars.  His 
military  talents  are  said  to  be  of  a  high  order.  As  he 
was  at  the  same  time  Regent  of  Serbia,  his  task  during 
the  campaign  was  no  light  one,  as,  in  addition  to  his 
military  duties,  he  had  to  take  part  in  the  civil  ad- 
ministration of  the  country  and  to  attend  to  delicate 
diplomatic  negotiations  with  foreign  Powers. 

But  the  brain  of  the  Serbian  Army  was  Field- 
Marshal  Putnik,  the  Chief  of  the  General  Staff.  It  is 
curious  that  from  the  beginning  of  the  war  till  Oc- 
tober,  191 5,  the  Allies  each  had  but  one  generalis- 


The  Serbian  Army  29 

simo,  while  Germany  had  a  succession  of  popular  idols 
at  the  head  of  her  armies,  who  all,  more  or  less,  proved 
to  have  "feet  of  clay."  Von  Kluck,  von  Moltke,  von 
Mackensen,  von  Gallwitz,  and  half  a  score  of  others 
had  their  passing  moments  of  popularity.  The  only 
German  general  who  continued  to  excite  popular 
enthusiasm  was  Field-Marshal  von  Hindenburg.  He 
possessed  those  qualities  of  the  old  swashbuckler  type 
which  appeal  to  the  popular  imagination.  But  on  the 
side  of  the  Allies  no  nation  possessed  a  leader  who 
enjoyed  the  confidence  and  veneration  of  the  entire 
people  to  a  greater  extent  than  did  General  Putnik, 
the  Chief  of  Staff  of  the  Serbian  forces. 

The  future  generalissimo  was  bom  in  1847,  ^"<i 
began  his  military  career  as  a  cadet  of  the  Military 
Academy  of  Belgrade.  When  the  Turco-Serbian  War 
of  1876  broke  out  he  was  still  a  first  lieutenant.  A 
year  later,  when  Russia  took  the  field  against  Turkey, 
he  had  been  promoted  to  captain,  and  he  went  through 
that  campaign  as  company  leader.  When  Serbia  in 
1885  declared  war  on  Bulgaria,  Radomir  Putnik  was 
lieutenant-colonel  and  Chief  of  Staff  of  the  first  "Ban" 
of  the  Danube  Division.  On  being  promoted  colonel 
he  became  Chief  of  the  General  Staff,  and  shortly  after 
was  promoted  to  the  command  of  the  Division  of  the 
Shumadia. 

On  account  of  his  political  sympathies  he  was  forced 
by  King  Milan  to  relinquish  his  command.  From  that 
moment  until  the  accession  of  King  Peter  in  1903 
Colonel  Putnik  lived  in  retirement  and  devoted  himself 
exclusively  to  military  studies.  When  the  Karageorge- 


30         From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

vitchs  remounted  the  throne  of  their  ancestors  King 
Peter  recalled  Colonel  Putnik  to  active  service  and 
promoted  him  to  the  rank  of  general.  From  that 
moment  Putnik's  prestige  did  not  cease  to  increase. 
When  he  was  not  in  active  command  of  a  division  he 
held  the  portfolio  of  Minister  of  War. 

Small  and  spare  of  stature,  General  Putnik  had  not 
that  outward  expression  of  physical  vigour  which  one 
associates  with  military  energy.  His  grey  beard, 
trimmed  to  a  point,  was  whitened  by  the  silver  threads 
of  long  nights  of  anxious  vigil  and  the  weight  of  ill- 
ness. Only  the  two  vertical  lines  between  his  heavy 
eyebrows  denoted  the  iron  will  of  the  Commander-in- 
Chief  of  the  Serbian  Army.  When  his  eyes  lighted  up 
his  whole  face  was  illuminated  with  a  flash  of  energy. 

When  the  first  Balkan  War,  the  campaign  against 
Turkey,  was  declared,  General  Putnik  was  naturally 
put  at  the  head  of  the  Army.  On  this  occasion  King 
Peter  revived  an  old  Serbian  title.  He  made  the 
general  a  "Voivode,"  which  signifies  "dux,"  or  leader, 
in  the  classical  acceptance  of  the  word.  The  functions 
which  were  attached  to  the  title  in  the  Middle  Ages 
were  equivalent  to  those  of  the  modern  commander  of 
an  army  corps.  The  equivalent  to  this  rank  in  other 
armies  is  that  of  Field-Marshal. 

The  man  who  since  his  youngest  years  had  not 
ceased  to  awaken  ever-growing  confidence  and  devo^ 
tion  among  his  countrymen  had  a  constitution  under- 
mined by  illness.  His  advanced  age  forced  him  to 
take  every  precaution.  Attacked  by  severe,  chronic 
asthma,  he  rarely  left  his  room,  living  in  an  apart- 


The  Serbian  Army  31 

ment  kept  constantly  at  hothouse  temperature.  His 
manner  was  brusque,  and  on  all  occasions  he  expressed 
himself  with  outspoken  soldierly  frankness. 

From  the  point  of  view  of  military  science  the 
distinguishing  characteristic  of  General  Putnik  was  his 
marvellous  memory  of  topography.  Thanks  to  this 
precious  faculty,  without  quitting  his  room  he  could 
follow  and  direct  the  movements  of  the  troops  under 
his  command,  and  even  manoeuvre  them  with  a  perfect 
knowledge  of  the  country  in  which  they  were  operat- 
ing. His  soldiers  had  an  absolutely  blind  confidence 
in  his  powers. 

General  Putnik  began  life  a  poor  man,  and  poor  he 
remained.  After  the  conclusion  of  the  first  Balkan 
War,  in  recognition  of  the  immense  services  he  had 
rendered  his  country,  a  number  of  wealthy  Serbians 
desired  to  present  him  with  a  fortune.  This  General 
Putnik  refused.  'T  thank  you,"  he  said;  "your  offer 
has  deeply  touched  me.  But  what  I  have  done  does 
not  require  any  material  reward.  I  am  poor,  I  have 
always  been  poor,  and  poor  I  will  remain.  I  only  ask 
one  thing.  I  have  many  children.  If  ever  one  of 
them  should  be  in  need  of  help  I  hope  that  in  memory 
of  me  he  will  find  a  helping  hand." 

The  Voivode  was  literally  adored  by  the  whole 
Army.  The  Crown  Prince  surrounded  him  with  every 
care.  Nothing  was  left  undone  to  promote  the  well- 
being  of  the  man  who  incarnated  the  soul  of  the 
Serbian  nation. 


CHAPTER  II 

THE  AUSTRO-GERMAN  AND  BULGARIAN  ARMIES 

AFTER  the  rout  of  the  Austrian  Army  under 
Field-Marshal  von  Potiorek  in  December,  1914, 
by  the  Serbians,  the  forces  of  the  Dual  Monarchy 
made  no'  further  attempt  to  invade  Serbia.  They 
merely  kept  a  few  regiments  on  the  Danube  front  to 
oppose  any  possible  attempt  by  King  Peter's  troops 
to  invade  Hungary,  while  a  dozen  or  so  batteries  kept 
up  a  desultory  artillery  duel  with  the  Serbian  guns 
defending  the  Save  and  the  Danube.  As  Serbia  was 
in  the  throes  of  the  terrible  typhus  outbreak,  the  Army 
was  not  in  a  condition  to  undertake  an  offensive  move- 
ment, even  if  such  had  been  planned  or  intended. 

This  condition  of  things  continued  until  the  early 
summer  of  191 5.  The  respite  was  a  most  welcome 
one  to  the  Serbian  Army,  exhausted  by  three  years' 
constant  fighting.  It  is  even  questionable  if  this  period 
of  truce  might  not  have  continued  indefinitely  if  it 
had  not  been  for  the  critical  position  of  Turkey.  That 
Power  was  facing  the  Russian  Army  in  the  Caucaus 
and  the  Franco-British  force  operating  in  the  Darda- 
nelles. The  Turks  were  running  short  of  ammunition 
and  war  stores  of  all  kinds.  This  state  of  affairs  had 
been  brought  about  by  the  refusal  of  Roumania,  in  the 

32 


Austro-German  &  Bulgarian  Armies    33 

spring  of  191 5  under  pressure  from  the  Entente 
Powers,  to  allow  any  further  supplies  for  the  Turks 
to  cross  her  territory.  The  collapse  of  Turkey  would 
have  been  a  veritable  disaster  for  Germany,  as  it  would 
have  had  as  its  first  result  the  opening  of  the  Darda- 
nelles. This  would  have  allowed  Russia  to  receive 
the  munitions,  the  want  of  which  was  paralysing  her 
operations  on  the  Polish  front  and  in  the  Carpathians. 

It  therefore  became  a  vital  matter  for  Germany  to 
come  to  the  aid  of  her  Turkish  ally.  The  only  way 
this  could  be  done  was  by  forcing  her  way  through 
Serbia  to  Bulgaria  and  thence  to  Constantinople.  For 
this  a  German  Army  was  necessary,  and  this  for  two 
reasons.  Firstly,  after  the  rout  of  the  Austrian  Army 
in  December,  it  was  doubtful  if  Austrian  soldiers 
could  be  got  to  stand  up  against  the  soldiers  of  King 
Peter,  and  secondly,  the  Dual  Monarchy  had  difficulty 
in  finding  the  men.  Not  that  the  Emperor  Francis 
Joseph  did  not  dispose  of  hundreds  of  thousands  of 
troops.  He  had  large  reserves,  but  unfortunately  he 
could  not  use  them. 

This  was  due  to  the  heterogeneous  composition  of 
his  Empire.  Prince  Metternich,  in  the  'fifties  declared, 
speaking  of  Italy,  "Ce  nest  pas  un  pays,  c'est  une  ex- 
pression geographique."  This  was  equally  true  of  the 
Dual  Monarchy.  Its  curious  composition  presented  a 
complicated  problem  for  its  General  Staff.  It  was  im- 
possible to  send  Croatian  or  Bosnian  soldiers  against 
Serbia,  or  men  from  the  Trentino  and  Tyrol  against 
Italy,  or  Poles  into  Galicia,  or  employ  Bohemians 
against  Russia.    They  would  desert  en  'masse  to  the 


34         From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

enemy.  Austria  had  already  had  prcxDf  of  this  in  the 
first  Serbian  campaign  when  whole  companies  of 
Croatians,  with  their  officers  and  equipment,  surren- 
dered without  firing  a  shot.  Thirty  thousand  Austrian 
Croatians  and  Bosnians  taken  prisoners  in  Poland  by 
the  Russians  asked  to  be  sent  to  Serbia  to  fight  with 
their  brothers-in-race  against  Austria.  Austria  could 
not  even  count  on  her  Poles  and  Bohemians  to  fight 
against  Serbs.  It  is  impossible  to  count  on  Slav  troops 
to  operate  against  a  Slav  country. 

If  then  Germany  desired  to  crush  Serbia  and  effect 
her  junction  with  the  Bulgarians,  it  was  clear  she 
must  herself  undertake  the  invasion  of  Serbia.  The 
importance  she  attached  to  it  was  shown  by  the  choice 
of  the  generals  entrusted  with  the  command  of  the 
troops.  The  commander-in-chief  was  the  famous 
Field-Marshal  von  Mackensen  and  his  principal  lieu- 
tenant was  General  von  Gallwitz.  The  leading  role 
played  in  the  great  war  is  a  signal  proof  of  the 
former's  talents,  for  it  was  by  sheer  merit  that  he 
forced  himself  to  the  front.  It  is  notorious  that  he 
was  persona  ingratissima  with  the  Kaiser,  who  dislikes 
men  of  strong  character  around  him,  men  who  refuse 
to  play  the  courtier  to  the  War-Lord.  General  von 
Mackensen  had  been  commander  of  the  army  corps 
which  had  its  headquarters  in  Dantzic  when  the  Crown 
Prince  was  appointed  Colonel  of  the  Deaths-Head 
Hussars  in  garrison  in  that  city.  He  proved  a  most 
difficult  and  insubordinate  officer,  and  came  repeatedly 
in  conflict  with  General  von  Mackensen.  At  first  the 
Kaiser  supported  the  latter's  authority,  but  later  on 


Austro-German  &  Bulgarian  Armies    35 

the  Crown  Prince  won  him  over  to  his  side  with  the 
result  that  General  von  Mackensen  resigned  his  com- 
mand. He  was  living  in  retirement  when  the  war  broke 
out.  Of  course,  in  common  with  all  other  generals 
judged  physically  fit,  he  was  recalled  to  active  service. 
His  brilliant  campaign  in  Poland  is  in  everybody's 
memory,  a  campaign  which  earned  him  his  marshal's 
baton.  The  decision  of  the  Great  General  Staff  to 
entrust  him  with  the  command  of  the  army  marching 
on  Constantinople  was  a  clear  proof  of  the  enormous 
importance  the  Germans  attached  to  the  success  of 
the  campaign. 

General  von  Gallwitz  was  a  worthy  assistant  to  his 
chief.  He  was  known  to  be  a  soldier  of  great  energy 
and  decision  of  character  and  a  tactician  of  great  skill. 
The  choice  of  these  men  proved  that  the  Kaiser  in- 
tended to  reach  Constantinople  coiite  que  coute. 

But  if  the  leaders  were  excellent  it  is  more  than 
could  be  said  of  the  rank  and  file.  The  quality  of 
the  troops  under  the  command  of  Field-Marshal  von 
Mackensen  is  a  proof  of  the  fact  that  as  far  back  as 
July,  191 5,  the  Germans  were  beginning  to  run  short 
of  men.  The  200,000  men  the  Germans  put  in  the 
field  were  brought  together  from  all  the  fronts.  There 
were  men  from  Warsaw,  Lodz  and  Brest-Litovsk 
fighting  side  by  side  with  units  from  Arras,  Ypres  and 
Champagne.  The  quality  was  miserable.  During  the 
campaign  I  had  an  opportunity  of  seeing  hundreds  of 
German  prisoners.  I  invariably  found  them  to  be 
youths  of  seventeen  or  eighteen  years  and  men  of  over 
forty.    They  were  pale-faced  and  narrow-chested,  a 


36         From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

class  of  men  who,  twelve  months  before,  would  not 
have  passed  the  doctor.  I  even  saw  one  man  who  had 
only  three  fingers  on  his  right  hand.  A  French  surgeon 
told  me  he  had  treated  a  man,  who  was  a  typewriter 
with  the  staff,  who  was  deaf  and  dumb. 

The  only  man  of  really  good  physique  and  soldierly 
appearance  I  saw  was  a  non-commissioned  officer,  but 
then  he  was  a  professional  soldier  with  twelve  years' 
service  to  his  credit.  He  told  me  that  the  officers  had 
informed  their  men  that  the  Serbians  would  bolt  at 
the  first  sight  of  a  Prussian  helmet.  They  had  been 
not  a  little  astonished  when  the  Serbians  came  at  them 
with  the  bayonet  and  hurled  regiment  after  regiment 
into  the  Danube.  At  Krushevatz  I  met  a  prisoner  who 
did  not  look  a  day  beyond  sixteen  years.  His  pickle- 
haube  was  so  big  that  it  came  down  to  his  ears.  He 
told  me  that  he  was  seventeen  and  a  half  years  old, 
but  I  doubt  it.  He  certainly  looked  a  round-faced 
school-boy. 

It  was  with  such  a  materiel  that  Field-Marshal  von 
Mackensen  invaded  Serbia.  Of  the  100,000  Austrians 
little  need  be  said.  They  were  used  to  garrison  the 
captured  towns  and  guard  communications.  Their 
leader  knew  better  than  send  them  against  Serbian 
troops.  The  fear  felt  by  them  for  their  conquerors  of 
eight  months  before  would  probably  have  caused  a 
second  debacle. 

But  unfortunately  for  the  Serbians  it  was  not  on 
his  infantry  that  Field-Marshal  von  Mackensen  relied, 
but  on  his  artillery  and  machine  gun.  For  every 
Serbian  battery  the  Germans  had  three,  and  while  the 


Austro-German  &  Bulgarian  Armies    37 

Serbs  had  a  machine-gun  section  per  battalion  the  Ger- 
mans had  one  per  company.  When  a  force  out- 
numbers its  opponent  by  three  to  one,  the  quaHty  of 
the  infantry  becomes  of  secondary  importance.  A 
pale  and  narrow-chested  soldier  in  a  turning  move- 
ment is  just  as  good  as  a  lifeguardsman,  and  when  an 
army  finds  its  rear  threatened,  the  quality  of  the 
troops  operating  does  not  count.  In  a  country  cut  up 
intO'  watertight  compartments  like  Serbia  by  ranges  of 
mountains,  a  small  force  is  more  handicapped  than 
when  operating  in  the  open  country.  With  the  pos- 
sibility of  deploying  on  a  front  twice  as  large  as  that 
of  the  Serbians,  it  was  possible  for  the  Germans  to 
continually  threaten  the  flanks  of  the  Serbian  Army, 
whose  rear  was  constantly  menaced  by  the  Bulgarian 
Army. 

The  army  of  King  Ferdinand  entered  upon  the  cam- 
paign with  every  advantage  on  its  side.  It  mustered 
nearly  400,000  men,  against  whom  the  Serbians  could 
oppose  barely  150,000.  They  had  had  a  rest  of  nearly 
two  years  since  the  conclusion  of  the  second  Balkan 
War,  and  had  time  to  thoroughly  re-organize  and  re- 
equip  their  army.  Germany  had  in  August  made  them 
a  loan  of  two  hundred  and  fifty  million  francs  so 
that  they  were  financially  ready  for  the  campaign. 

In  addition  the  Bulgarian  Army  had  an  advantage 
over  the  German  Army  in  that  they  were  fighting  in 
a  territory  in  which  they  had  already  operated,  and 
doing  it  with  troops  which  knew  the  country  and 
who  were  veterans  with  twO'  campaigns  behind  them. 
They  were  further  burning  to  avenge  the  defeat  they 


38         From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

had  suffered  at  the  hands  of  the  Serbians  two  years 
before.  In  the  period  of  rest  they  had  enjoyed  they 
had  manufactured  and  imported  enormous  quantities 
of  ammunition.  For  three  months  before  the  begin- 
ning of  the  campaign  they  had  had  the  advantage  of 
the  counsel  of  several  score  of  officers  of  the  German 
staff,  who  had  worked  out  at  the  Ministry  of  War  in 
Sofia  the  whole  plan  of  campaign  of  the  Austro- 
German  and  Bulgarian  armies. 

They  had  further  the  certainty  that  the  instant  tliey 
joined  hands  with  Field-Marshal  von  Mackensen's 
army  they  would  be  able  to  receive  munitions  in  un- 
limited quantities,  while  the  Serbians,  once  they  were 
cut  off  from  all  communication  with  the  outside  world. 
would  be  unable  to  renew  their  stock.  The  Serbs  had 
therefore  to  husband  their  ammunition,  while  their 
enemies  had  no  necessity  for  doing  so.  Of  this  they 
had  bitter  experience  during  the  campaign. 

One  of  the  chief  difficulties  with  which  the  Serbians 
had  to  contend  was  their  ignorance  of  the  strength 
of  the  army  which  Austria  and  Germany  were  pre- 
pared to  bring  against  them.  All  they  had  to  go  on 
until  the  actual  invasion  were  the  reports  brought  in 
by  the  French  aviators  attached  to  the  Serbian  Army, 
and  these,  of  course,  gave  only  a  general  indication. 
They  could  only  report  on  the  troops  massed  in  the 
vicinity  of  the  frontier,  while  the  Serbian  General 
Staff  had  to  reckon  with  German  reinforcements  kept 
out  of  sight  which  could  be  brought  up  by  rail  in  a 
few  hours.  It  was  this  uncertainty  which  rendered  it 
very  difficult  for  Field-Marshal  Putnik  to  make  his 


Austro-German  &  Bulgarian  Armies    39 

plans  to  meet  the  Austro-German  invasion.  If  he  kept 
too  many  troops  on  the  northern  front  he  would 
weaken  his  eastern  one,  while  if  he  massed  his  main 
forces  against  the  Central  Powers,  he  exposed  Mace- 
donia'to  invasion. 

Of  course  in  regard  to  the  strength  of  the  Bulgarian 
Army  he  knew  that  to  a  battalion.  He  knew  that 
opposed  to  the  1 50,00  men,  the  maximum  force  which 
he  could  spare  to  hold  Bulgaria  in  check,  were  36 
regiments  of  4  battalions  with  reserve  formations  of 
equal  strength,  9  artillery  regiments  and  4  batteries  of 
4  guns  each,  24  mountain  batteries  and  6  battalions  of 
fortress  artillery,  12  regiments  of  cavalry,  besides 
pioneers,  railway  troops,  pontoon  battalions,  telegraph 
battalions  and  other  technical  units.  This  formidable 
force,  one  third  stronger  than  the  whole  Serbian 
Army,  was  ready  to  hurl  itself  on  Serbia's  flank  the 
moment  she  was  in  grips  with  the  Northern  invaders. 

All  that  Serbia  could  do  was  to  await  the  attack  of 
her  enemies  and  transport  her  army  to  the  point  chiefly 
menaced.  This  entailed  a  continual  va-et-v-ient  of 
troops,  divisions  being  taken  from  one  front  and 
hurried  to  the  point  of  danger  on  the  other,  as  oc- 
casion arose.  And  this  in  a  country  where  the  railway 
is  single  track  and  the  rolling  stock  none  too  plentiful. 
No  army  ever  faced  more  crushing  odds  or  faced  them 
with  more  courage,  even  if  it  was  the  courage  of 
despair. 

Field-Marshal  Putnik  had  also  to  reckon  with  the 
unfavourable  geographical  position  of  the  capital  and 
the  temporary  capital  of  the  country;  Belgrade  being 


40         From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

but  a  few  hundred  yards  from  the  Hungarian  frontier, 
while  Nish,  the  seat  of  government  at  the  moment  of 
the  outbreak  of  hostiHties,  is  one  day's  march  from 
the  Bulgarian  frontier.  In  addition  he  was  handi- 
capped by  the  fact  that  the  Salonica-Uskub-Nish  rail- 
way, on  which  so  much  depended,  is,  at  Strumnitza, 
but  three  short  miles  from  the  Bulgarian  frontier  and 
thus  at  the  mercy  of  a  sudden  coup  de  main. 


CHAPTER  III 

THE  BATTLE  OF  THE  MORAVA 

WHEN  in  August,  1915,  I  received  orders  from 
my  paper,  the  New  York  Tribune,  to  join  the 
headquarters  of  the  Serbian  Army  I  was  at  Lugano 
in  Switzerland  where,  safe  from  the  pitiless  blue  pencil 
of  the  censor,  I  could  record  the  progress  of  events 
in  Alsace  and  in  the  Italian  Peninsula,  As  it  was  clear 
from  the  telegrams  in  the  Swiss  press  that  the  opening 
of  the  second  Austro-Serbian  campaign  was  imminent 
I  left  at  once  for  Salonica  via  Rome,  Naples  and 
Athens. 

At  Rome  I  had  a  long  conversation  (of  which  I 
have  given  a  summary  in  the  introduction  to  this 
volume)  with  M.  Coromilos,  the  eminent  diplomatist 
who  represents  Greece  at  the  Italian  court.  He  was 
frankly  pessimistic  at  the  extraordinary  course  of  the 
diplomacy  of  the  Allied  Powers  and  foresaw  only  a 
catastrophe  as  the  result  of  it.  Reports  of  the  coming 
attack  on  Serbia  by  Austria,  this  time  reinforced  by 
Germany,  were  day  by  day  more  persistent,  but  the 
same  curious  optimism  regarding  the  attitude  of  Bul- 
garia was  visible  in  the  columns  of  the  Italian  govern- 
mental organs,  which  probably  drew  their  inspiration 
from  the  Quai  d'Orsay  and  the  Foreign  Office. 

41 


42         From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

In  Athens  I  found  the  prevaiHng  sentiment  one  of 
extreme  pessimism.  The  Greek  Kingdom  was  torn  by 
conflicting  currents.  The  Premier,  M.  Venizelos,  was 
frankly  in  sympathy  with  the  AlHes,  but  he  informed 
me  that  King  Constantine  was  convinced  of  the  uUi- 
mate  triumph  of  Germany.  When  I  asked  him  on 
what  His  Majesty  based  this  conviction  he  simply 
smiled  discreetly  and  shrugged  his  shoulders  without 
replying.  An  American  confrere  who  had  had  a  long 
conversation  with  King  Constantine,  to  whom  I  put 
the  same  question,  replied  that  it  could  not  be 
described  as  a  conviction.  A  conviction  is  arrived  at  as 
the  result  of  logical  reasoning.  In  the  King's  case 
it  was  simply  faith,  a  sort  of  heaven-sent  revelation. 
The  definition  of  faith  in  the  Shorter  Catechism  as 
"the  evidence  of  things  not  seen,  the  substance  of 
things  hoped  for,"  was  probably  a  good  description 
of  His  Majesty's  mentality. 

The  Greek  General  Staff,  which,  almost  to  a  man, 
is  German  trained,  made  no  secret  of  their  sym- 
pathies for  the  cause  of  the  Central  Powers.  The 
members  of  the  court,  carefully  chosen  by  King  Con- 
stantine's  consort,  the  sister  of  the  Kaiser,  were  also 
strongly  pro-German.  The  notorious  Baron  von 
Schenck,  the  agent  in  Athens  for  the  German  propa- 
ganda, who  disposed  of  unlimited  financial  resources, 
had  done  his  work  thoroughly  and  secured  the  support 
of  a  large  and  influential  section  of  the  press.  He 
had  also  enrolled  in  his  service  a  number  of  Greek 
politicians  susceptible  of  yielding  to  the  kind  of  per- 
suasion he  used.    It  is  in  this  atmosphere  that  King 


The  Battle  of  the  Morava         43 

Constantine  lived.  It  was  therefore  no  wonder  that  he 
had  confidence  in  the  power  and  the  greatness  of  Ger- 
many and  the  ultimate  triumph  of  her  arms,  for  all 
suggestion  to  the  contrary  was  carefully  kept  from 
his  ears. 

At  the  same  time  the  great  mass  of  the  people 
were  on  the  side  of  the  Allies.  But  they  had  no  means 
of  making  their  opinions  felt  in  governmental  circles. 
King  Constantine  was  undoubtedly  extremely  popular 
with  the  army  and  with  that  on  his  side  he  did  not 
fear  any  attempt  at  revolution.  He  had  twice  forced 
M.  Venizelos  to  resign  when  he  was  at  the  head  of  a 
majority  in  the  Chamber.  This,  of  course,  was  strain- 
ing the  constitution  to  breaking-point,  as  it  was  only 
a  disguised  form  of  coup  d'etat,  but  having,  as  I  have 
said,  the  army  on  his  side,  he  was  convinced  that  he 
could  risk  such  measures. 

On  one  point,  however,  M.  Venizelos  informed  me 
the  King  could  be  depended  on,  and  that  was  in  regard 
to  carrying  out  his  treaty  obligations  towards  Serbia. 
His  Majesty  had  not  yet,  he  declared  to  me,  got  to  the 
"scrap  of  paper"  theory  of  his  imperial  brother-in-law, 
and  was  prepared  to  stand  by  the  treaty  with  Serbia 
in  case  that  Kingdom  should  be  attacked  by  Bulgaria. 
Some  strong  influence  must,  however,  have  been 
brought  to  bear  on  him  to  make  him  change  this 
view.  When,  a  fortnight  later,  the  moment  came  for 
Greece  to  maintain  her  engagements  King  Constantine 
dismissed  M.  Venizelos  from  power  and  substituted 
a  Cabinet  under  M.  Zaimis,  which  repudiated  the 
Greco-Serbian    Treaty    as    inapplicable    to    the    case 


44         From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

where  King  Peter's  dominions  were  attacked  by  two 
Great  Powers  as  well  as  by  Bulgaria.  This  repre- 
sented the  final  break-up  of  the  Balkan  League,  and 
the  Peninsula,  from  that  moment,  returned  to  the 
anarchial  conflict  of  interests  which  had  for  a  quarter 
of  a  century  been  its  leading  characteristic. 

At  Salonica  I  found  intense  excitement  prevailing. 
Every  report  from  Nish  and  Sofia  showed  that  the 
moment  of  the  catastrophe  was  approaching.  It  was 
extremely  curious  to  contrast  these  reports  with  the 
optimistic  telegrams  from  London  and  Paris  assuring 
us  that  Bulgaria  was  the  sincere  friend  and  supporter 
of  the  Entente  Powers.  People  in  Salonica  read  these 
telegrams  with  the  blankest  amazement.  The  remarks 
made  on  the  extraordinary  policy  being  pursued  by 
the  Allies  were  far  from  complimentary  to  the  Foreign 
Ministers  carrying  it  out. 

On  September  28th,  Bulgaria  flung  off  the  mask  and 
mobilized  her  army.  Salonica  was  seething  with  ex- 
citement, everybody  asking  what  would  be  the  policy 
of  Greece.  Forty-eight  hours  later  came  the  royal 
decree  mobilizing  the  Greek  Army  in  its  turn.  Every- 
body supposed  that  Greece  was  going  to  stand  by  her 
Serbian  ally.  But  they  reckoned  without  the  King. 
The  mobilization  was  the  last  act  of  M.  Venizelos.  A 
few  days  later  he  was  dismissed  from  power.  German 
influence  in  Athens  had  again  carried  the  day. 

These  startling  weeks  had,  as  their  first  result,  the 
collapse  of  the  castle  of  cards  so  painfully  erected  by 
the  Foreign  Ministers  of  the  Entente  Powers.  They 
began  to  fear  that  the  astute  Bulgarian  Prime  Minis- 


The  Battle  of  the  Morava         45 

ter  had  been  making  a  fool  of  them  (a  conviction 
which  everyone  in  the  Balkans  except  the  diplomatists 
of  the  Entente  Powers  had  reached  weeks  before)  and 
they  began  to  concert  hasty  measures  to  avert  the 
impending  disaster. 

When  I  came  down  from  lunch  at  the  Hotel  de 
Rome  on  September  27th  I  found  the  vestibule 
crowded  with  British  soldiers  seated  around,  their 
rifles  between  their  knees  and  the  floor  littered  with 
their  knapsacks.  They  were  the  orderlies  of  the  Staff 
Officers  who  had  just  arrived  from  the  Dardanelles 
on  a  French  warship.  It  was  clear  that  an  expedi- 
tionary force  was  about  to  be  disembarked  in 
Salonica. 

I  saw  that  if  I  wanted  to  make  sure  of  reaching 
Nish  I  had  no  time  to  lose,  as  it  was  more  than  certain 
that  the  first  move  of  the  Bulgarians  would  be  to 
attack  the  Salonica-Nish  railway  at  Strumnitza.  I 
accordingly  left  Salonica  on  Friday,  October  ist,  in 
the  train  de  luxe  which  left  three  times  a  week  for 
the  temporary  capital  of  Serbia.  It  was  a  thoroughly 
up-to-date  train  with  sleeping  and  restaurant  cars, 
but  there  its  resemblance  with  similar  trains  in  other 
countries  ceased.  It  crawled  along  at  a  snail's  pace, 
stopping  at  every  little  wayside  station,  and  some- 
times even,  for  no  apparent  reason,  in  the  open  coun- 
try. The  line,  since  the  mobilization  had  been 
ordered,  was  closely  guarded,  but  the  presence  of  the 
Greek  sentries  was  the  only  sign  of  military  activity. 
But  once  we  had  crossed  the  Serbian  frontier  all  this 
changed.    The  railway  wound  its  way  among  a  sue- 


46         From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

cession  of  low,  arid,  brown  hills  on  the  crests  of  which 
one  could  see  the  silhouettes  of  guns  in  battery  and 
the  parapets  of  freshly  dug  trenches. 

At  Strumnitza,  which  is  only  four  short  kilometres 
from  the  Bulgarian  frontier,  a  strong  force  of 
infantry,  cavalry  and  artillery  was  encamped.  Long 
lines  of  trenches  had  been  dug  along  the  hills  dominat- 
ing the  railway  and  strong  redoubts  constructed  for 
placing  guns.  The  railway  guard  consisted  mostly  of 
peasants  in  the  russet-brown  costume  peculiar  to 
Serbia.  Though  the  only  outward  sign  of  their  mili- 
tary status  was  their  rifie  and  bayonet,  they  had  the 
air  of  veterans  with  their  bronzed  resolute  faces, 
barred  by  the  heavy,  drooping  moustache.  It  was  a 
curious  contrast  to  travel  in  a  modern  train  de  luxe 
through  a  country  devastated  by  three  years  of  cease- 
less war. 

On  every  siding  were  trains  piled  high  with  muni- 
tions, aeroplanes,  automobiles  and  other  war  material 
all  rolling  northward  as  fast  as  they  were  disembarked 
at  Salonica.  When  the  train  entered  Serbian  terri- 
tory its  speed  was,  if  possible,  slower  than  ever.  But 
fourteen  months  of  newspaper  work  on  the  French 
front  had,  however,  trained  me  to  philosophy  in  such 
matters.  Trains  in  war  time  leave  when  they  leave 
and  arrive  when  they  arrive,  and  that's  all  about  it. 

It  was  nearly  midday  of  the  second  day  when  we 
finally  arrived  at  our  destination.  As  is  usual  in 
Balkan  towns  the  station  at  Nish  is  a  mile  and  a  half 
or  so  from  the  centre  of  the  town  and  the  route  lies 
over   cobble-stone   streets   in   an   incredible   condition 


The  Battle  of  the  Morava         47 

of  disrepair.  Nish,  in  spite  of  having  been  Serbian 
for  over  thirty  years,  still  has  all  the  characteristics 
of  a  Turkish  town,  wide,  dirty  streets  flanked  on 
either  side  by  rows  of  one-story  houses,  with,  here 
and  there,  immense  public  squares  over  which  the  ram- 
shackle public  vehicles  roll  and  rock  like  ships  in  a 
heavy  sea.  In  fine  weather  the  dominant  feature  is 
dust  which  drifts  in  heavy  clouds  before  the  wind;  in 
wet  weather  the  streets  are  a  sea  of  mud  of  a  peculiarly 
tenacious  quality. 

At  ordinary  times  Nish  has  a  population  of  about 
30,000  souls.  When  I  reached  it  there  were  nearly 
one  hundred  thousand  and  there  had  been  even  a 
greater  number.  These  were  chiefly  refugees  who  had 
poured  into  the  town  during  the  first  Austrian  in- 
vasion, and  officials  who  had  followed  the  Government 
when  Nish  was  made  the  temporary  capital.  The 
Foreign  Office  was  installed  in  the  Prefecture  and  the 
other  Ministries  were  lodged  fant  bicn  que  mal  in  other 
public  buildings.  The  diplomatic  corps,  which  had 
followed  the  Government  from  Belgrade,  occupied 
such  quarters  as  they  had  been  able  to  find.  The  Dip- 
lomatic Club,  where  the  members  of  the  corps  lunched 
and  dined,  was  installed  in  rooms  above  the  Bella 
Kaphana,  the  leading  restaurant  of  the  town.  The  fare 
of  the  Bella  Kaphana  bore  only  a  distant  resemblance 
to  that  of  the  Maison  d'Or  or  the  Cafe  Anglais,  but 
a  la  guerre  comme  o  la  guerre.  Later  on  we  were 
destined  to  look  back  on  the  meals  there  as  repasts  fit 
for  Lucullus. 

The  Bella  Kaphana  was  the  news  exchange  of  the 


48         From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

town.  Here  at  lunch  and  dinner  one  met  French 
aviators  and  Red  Cross  surgeons,  British  and  Amer- 
ican ambulance  units,  Serbian  officers  of  every  arm, 
local  journalists  and  government  officials.  The  prin- 
ciple underlying  the  efforts  of  the  chef  seemed  to  be 
"When  in  doubt  use  paprica,"  a  peculiarly  vivacious 
form  of  red  pepper.  The  result  was  that  almost 
every  dish  tasted  like  a  torchlight  procession  and 
brought  tears  to  the  eyes  of  the  most  hardened.  Wine 
was  still  plentiful  and  beer  (two  francs  a  bottle)  could 
be  had  at  irregular  intervals  when  the  train  brought  a 
consignment  from  Salonica. 

The  wildest  rumours  were  current,  but  little  news 
that  could  be  depended  upon.  The  newspapers  from 
Salonica  were  eagerly  bought  up.  They  contained 
reports  of  the  steady  disembarkation  of  French  and 
British  troops  and  hope  ran  high  that  reinforcements 
would  soon  reach  Serbian  soil.  The  greatest  en- 
thusiasm prevailed  and  when  at  last  the  arrival  of 
French  troops  was  officially  announced  for  the  next 
day,  the  town  went  wild  with  excitement.  The  munic- 
ipality voted  twenty  thousand  francs,  which  it  could 
ill  spare,  for  the  decoration  of  the  streets  in  honour 
of  the  arrival  of  the  Allied  troops.  In  a  few  hours 
the  town  burst  out  in  a  mass  of  bunting,  French  tri- 
colours and  British  Union  Jacks  were  everywhere  en 
evidence.  Lines  of  Venetian  masts,  festooned  with 
French  and  British  colours,  were  erected  from  the 
railway  station  to  the  Town  Hall.  Peasants  poured  in 
by  thousands  from  the  surrounding  country  and  every 
inhabitant  of  Nish  was  afoot  to  welcome  the  Allies. 


The  Battle  of  the  Morava         49 

But  hours  passed  and  nothing  came.  Then  it  was 
announced  that  the  arrival  had  been  postponed  till  the 
following  day.  But  again  disappointment  awaited  the 
eager  crowds.  Day  after  day  passed,  till  finally,  as  I 
was  returning  home  one  night,  I  saw  town  officials 
going  round  in  the  darkness  gathering  in  the  flags  and 
packing  them  in  carts.  Next  morning  the  bare  poles 
gave  eloquent  testimony  that  the  short  dream  of  aid 
from  the  Allies  was  at  an  end. 

Depression  followed  on  the  former  enthusiasm. 
Hour  by  hour  the  reports  from  the  Danube  and  the 
Bulgarian  frontier  were  eagerly  read.  Every  evening 
in  the  Bella  Kaphana  the  faces  of  the  foreign  diplo- 
matists were  scanned  to  see  if  their  expressions  would 
give  any  indication  of  the  way  events  were  trending. 
All  we  could  hear  was  that  the  Austro-German  forces 
on  the  Danube  front  were  massing  scores  of  batteries 
of  guns  of  every  calibre  opposite  Belgrade,  Semen- 
dria,  Ram  and  other  towns  on  the  river  banks  while 
hour  by  hour  the  Bulgarians  were  concentrating  on  the 
eastern  frontier.  It  became  known  that  Field-Marshal 
Putnik  had  asked  permission  of  the  Allies  to  march 
the  Serbian  Army  across  the  frontier  and  break  up 
the  Bulgarian  mobilization  and  that  he  had  not  only 
been  refused  the  permission  in  question,  but  had  been 
given  the  astounding  assurance  that  the  Bulgarian 
mobilization  was  not  directed  against  Serbia.  This  as- 
surance was  received  with  derision  in  Nish  where 
everybody  knew  the  Bulgarian  attack  was  only  a  mat- 
ter of  hours. 

Then  the  crash  came.     On  the  5th  of  October  we 


50         From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

received  news  of  the  bombardment  of  Belgrade.  On 
that  date  forty-three  guns  of  30.5  g.nd  38  centimetres 
supported  by  scores  of  field  guns  and  mortars  of  vari- 
ous calibre  opened  fire  on  Belgrade,  Semendria  and 
other  towns  along  the  banks  of  the  Save  and  Danube. 
The  Serbians,  who  had  sent  their  heavy  guns  to  the 
Bulgarian  frontier,  had  at  the  Danube  only  a  score  or 
two  of  obsolete  Debange  guns  and  some  howitzer  bat- 
teries. The  only  heavy  ordnance  were  the  two  French 
and  four  British  naval  guns  manned  by  French  and 
British  sailors.  These  were  supported  by  some  heavily 
armed  Russian  monitors  on  the  Danube.  This  interna- 
tional force  was  under  the  command  of  Admiral  Trou- 
bridge  of  the  British  Navy.  The  French  guns  were 
struck  by  shells  and  put  out  of  action  the  first  day  of 
the  bombardment.  The  British  guns  were  more  for- 
tunate and  Commander  Kerr  was  able  to  withdraw 
them  unharmed.  They  accompanied  the  Serbian  Army 
throughout  the  entire  retreat  and  rendered  yeoman 
service. 

The  bombardment  of  Belgrade  was  one  of  the  fierc- 
est in  the  history  of  the  present  war.  Over  50,000 
projectiles  fell  in  the  town  in  the  first  forty-eight 
hours.  Nothing  was  spared.  Over  eighty  shells  struck 
or  fell  around  the  American  Hospital  under  the  charge 
of  Dr.  Ryan,  and  that  in  spite  of  the  fact  that  a  Red 
Cross  flag,  visible  for  miles,  was  flying  from  the  roof. 

After  a  number  of  unsuccessful  attempts  the  Ger- 
man infantry  on  October  6th  managed  to  get  a  footing 
on  the  right  bank  of  the  Danube  at  Belgrade  and  three 
other  points.    The  capital  was  only  defended  by  a  small 


The  Battle  of  the  Morava         51 

body  of  troops,  the  gendarmerie  and  a  number  of 
Comitadjis  or  irregulars.  The  defenders  fought  their 
assailants  hand  to  hand.  The  quays  of  the  Danube 
were  running  with  blood  and  piled  with  German 
corpses.  When  they  were  driven  from  the  quays  the 
Serbs  continued  the  fight  in  the  streets  of  the  city. 

A  large  number  of  the  inhabitants  tried  to  fly  when 
they  saw  the  Germans  land.  But  the  artillery  on  the 
other  side  of  the  river  had  opened  a  curtain  fire  on  the 
environs  of  the  city.  Two  miles  away  hundreds  of 
shells  were  bursting,  making  a  zone  of  fire  impossible 
to  cross,  while  overhead  German  aeroplanes  were  cir- 
cling, dropping  bombs  on  the  defenceless  people  below. 

It  took  two  days  for  the  invaders  to  break  the  heroic 
resistance  of  the  defenders  of  the  capital  and  to  reach 
the  positions  to  the  south  from  which  they  could 
dominate  the  town.  By  October  the  15th,  however, 
they  finally  occupied  the  banks  of  the  Save  and  Danube. 
Overwhelmed  by  numbers,  badly  protected  by  hastily 
constructed  trenches,  the  Serbian  troops  fought  des- 
perately, supporting  courageously  three  and  four  at- 
tacks each  day,  each  preceded  by  a  formidable  artillery 
preparation,  backed  up  by  masses  of  asphyxiating  gas. 
The  Germans  bought  their  success  dearly.  Their  losses 
in  killed  and  wounded  were  enormous,  and  at  one  point 
alone,  near  Zabrezh,  the  Serbs  took  over  a  thousand 
prisoners,  with  nearly  a  score  of  officers. 

Surprised  at  meeting  such  resistance,  the  Germans 
brought  up  fresh  reserves,  and  soon  their  forces  out- 
numbered the  Serbs  by  nearly  three  to  one,  while  their 
artillery  was  over  twice  as  strong  as  that  of  the  de- 


52         From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

fending  force.  But  in  spite  of  this  the  situation  re- 
mained undecided. 

It  was  the  pressure  from  the  Bulgarian  front  that 
finally  made  the  balance  to  incline  in  favour  of  the 
Germans.  Every  day  brought  to  Nish  fresh  reports 
of  the  massing  of  troops  on  the  eastern  frontier,  and 
on  October  12th  the  armies  of  Generals  Jekoff  and 
Boiadjeff,  without  any  previous  declaration  of  war,  at- 
tacked all  along  the  line.  The  Bulgarian  Army  alone 
was  a  hundred  and  fifty  thousand  men  stronger  than 
the  entire  Serbian  Army  of  250,000  men,  which  had 
in  addition  to  face  in  the  north  300,000  Germans  and 
Austrians  armed  to  the  teeth. 

It  was  clear  from  this  moment  that  the  principal 
effort  of  the  Germans  was  directed  against  the  valley 
of  the  Morava.  Once  this  was  in  their  hands  they 
could  force  their  way  down  it  to  the  Bulgarian  frontier 
and  join  hands  with  their  Bulgarian  allies.  This  would 
also  give  them  possession  of  the  Belgrade-Nish-Sofia- 
Constantinople  railway.  As  soon  as  the  junction  with 
the  Bulgarians  was  effected  they  could  pour  troops  and 
munitions  down  to  Constantinople.  When  this  was 
done  the  Franco-British  enterprise  in  Gallipoli  would 
become  hopeless.  The  real  defence  of  that  force  lay 
on  the  banks  of  the  Danube.  This  was  seen  by  the 
Allies  when  it  was  too  late.  General  Sarrail's  force 
was  la  moutarde  apres  le  diner,  as  our  French  friends 
would  say.  It  landed  at  Salonica  two  months  too  late 
to  be  of  the  slightest  use  in  saving  the  situation. 

As  soon  as  the  German  plan  of  operations  became 
clear,  I  determined  to  make  an  effort  to  reach  the  fight- 


The  Battle  of  the  Morava         53 

ing  line  of  tlie  Serbian  force  on  the  Danube  front. 
The  Headquarters  Staff  was  at  Kraguyevatz,  a  town 
situated  halfway  between  Nish  and  Belgrade. 

Kraguyevatz  is  a  town  of  considerable  military  im- 
portance, as  here  the  chief  Serbian  arsenal,  constructed 
by  the  Creusot  Company  of  France,  was  situated. 
Though  the  distance  was  only  a  matter  of  sixty  miles, 
it  proved  a  long  and  fatiguing  journey,  the  train 
trundling  along  at  about  ten  miles  an  hour,  and  being 
continually  side-tracked  to  allow  military  trains  loaded 
with  troops,  guns  and  munitions  to  pass. 

Kraguyevatz  proved  to  be  a  pleasant  little  town,  with 
nicely-built  houses  and  well-planted  gardens  and 
orchards.  It  is  supposed  to  be  specially  favoured 
meteorologically,  "rare  as  rain  in  Kraguyevatz"  being 
a  Serbian  proverb.  If  the  rain,  when  it  does  come,  in 
any  way  resembles  the  deluge  coming  down  when  I 
arrived  and  during  my  whole  stay,  I  can  only  regard 
this  as  a  special  dispensation  of  Providence. 

The  obtaining  of  permission  to  go  to  the  front  did 
not  prove  an  easy  matter.  The  reports  from  the 
Danube  were  not  cheerful  reading.  The  Serbian  troops 
were  being  hard  pressed,  and  at  such  moments  generals 
do  not  care  to  have  the  providing  of  facilities  to  jour- 
nalists added  to  their  other  troubles.  But  after  a  con- 
siderable expenditure  of  diplomacy,  I  at  last  received 
permission  to  proceed  to  Palanka,  where  I  was  told  I 
would  find  the  Division  of  the  Shumadia  which  was 
holding  the  entrance  of  the  valley  of  the  Morava 
against  the  Germans. 

But  it  was  one  thing  to  get  permission  to  go  to  the 


54         From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

front  and  another  thing  to  get  there.  I  was  told  to 
take  train  at  1 1  p.m.  to  Lapovo  and  there  to  change  on 
to  the  Palanka  Hne.  I  was  at  the  station  punctual  to 
the  minute,  but  this  was  more  than  could  be  said  of  the 
train.  There  was  a  constant  succession  of  troop  trains 
crammed  with  soldiers  pouring  north  to  reinforce  the 
fighting  line,  and  others  carrying  wounded  from  the 
front  travelling  in  the  contrary  direction.  As  the  line 
is  single  track  this  entailed  a  heavy  strain  on  its  re- 
sources, as  the  sidings  were  congested  and  the  staff 
overworked.  Hour  after  hour  we  waited  in  the  pour- 
ing rain.  The  streaming  platforms  were  glistening 
with  wet  in  the  crude  light  of  the  arc  lamps.  Train 
after  train  emerged  from  the  outer  darkness,  trundled 
slowly,  axles  creaking  and  groaning  beneath  the  load 
of  men  and  guns,  through  the  station  and  was  again 
swallowed  up  in  the  obscurity  beyond.  One  had  a  mo- 
mentary glimpse  of  the  Serbian  soldiers,  standing 
stoically  in  the  open  trucks  in  the  pouring  rain,  or  saw 
the  silhouette  of  the  guns,  their  muzzles  pointing  sky- 
ward, as  they  passed,  the  heads  of  the  horses  emerging 
through  the  openings  of  the  cattle  trucks  used  for  their 
transport. 

But  at  length,  at  four  o'clock  in  the  morning,  our 
train  arrived,  and  after  a  sojourn  of  half  an  hour  or 
so  in  the  station  moved  slowly  in  the  direction  of 
Lapovo.  Here  on  arriving  we  found  chaos  and  con- 
fusion. The  Bulgarians,  we  heard,  were  approaching 
Nish,  and  orders  had  been  given  to  evacuate  that  town. 
Train  after  train  was  pouring  into  Lapovo  disgorging 
its  quota  of  fugitives.    The  platforms  were  piled  moun- 


The  Battle  of  the  Morava         55 

tains  high  with  trunks  and  baskets  and  littered  with 
ambulance  stores,  among  which  were  moving  hundreds 
of  French  aviators,  Red  Cross  surgeons  and  nurses, 
scores  of  officers  and  civil  functionaries. 

The  news  they  brought  was  not  cheerful.  The  Bul- 
garians, it  was  said,  would  be  in  Nish  in  twenty-four 
hours.  This  was  not  exactly  welcome  news  for  me,  as 
all  my  baggage  was  still  there,  and  all  my  money,  with 
the  exception  of  the  couple  of  hundred  dinars  I  had 
with  me,  was  in  the  custody  of  the  Banque  Franco- 
Serbe.  But  experience  had  taught  me  to  take  such  re- 
ports cum  grano  salts.  As  the  Serbs,  when  I  had  left 
Nish  forty-eight  hours  before,  were  still  in  possession 
of  the  fortress  of  Pirot,  twenty  kilometres  from  the 
town,  I  did  not  anticipate  such  a  speedy  arrival  of  the 
Bulgarians.  In  any  case,  I  was  bound  for  the  moment 
in  the  opposite  direction  and  would  have  to  leave  the 
rest  to  fate. 

About  seven  o'clock  the  train  for  Palanka  arrived, 
and  we  proceeded  on  our  way.  With  me  were  a  num- 
ber of  staff  officers  bound  for  the  front  and  three  or 
four  French  military  doctors.  Soon  the  heavy  boom 
of  cannon  announced  that  we  were  approaching  our 
destination,  and  at  midday  our  train  rolled  slowly  into 
the  station  at  Palanka.  Outside  we  found  every  indi- 
cation that  we  were  very  near  the  fighting  line.  Long 
lines  of  field  guns  drawn  by  teams  of  patient  oxen 
filled  the  streets,  a  constant  stream  of  ambulance  wag- 
ons bearing  wounded  was  pouring  into  the  station  yard 
to  reach  the  sidings  where  the  hospital  trains  were 
drawn  up,  while  a  second  stream  of  wagons,  filled  with 


56         From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

ammunition  and  food  for  the  troops,  was  moving  in 
the  contrary  direction.  Crowds  of  fleeing  peasants 
thronged  the  little  town,  besieging  the  inns  and  bakers' 
shops,  clamouring  for  food.  As  the  staff  automobiles 
promised  had  not  arrived,  the  French  doctors  and  my- 
self made  for  the  nearest  restaurant  to  lunch  and  await 
their  arrival. 

It  was  nearly  two  o'clock  when  they  put  in  their  ap- 
pearance, and  we  started  for  the  fighting  line.  Soon 
after  leaving  the  town  we  came  on  an  endless  line  of 
bullock  wagons  pouring  toward  Palanka.  With  them 
were  marching  scores  of  peasants'  carts  piled  high  with 
furniture  and  bedding  covered  over  with  the  bril- 
liantly-coloured quilts  which  the  Serbians  affect,  on 
which  were  perched  the  old  women  and  the  children 
too  young  to  stand  the  fatigues  of  the  march.  The 
men,  the  women  and  the  older  children  were  tramping 
alongside,  leading  the  oxen  or  driving  countless  heads 
of  cattle  and  sheep  and  droves  of  pigs.  Some  even 
drove  flocks  of  geese  and  other  inhabitants  of  the 
poultry  yard.  When  we  breasted  a  steep  ascent  and 
arrived  at  the  summit,  an  extraordinary  sight  met  our 
view.  As  far  as  the  eye  could  reach,  in  front  and  be- 
hind, was  an  endless  procession  of  vehicles  all  pouring 
southward.  It  was  clear  that  the  retreat  had  begun  and 
that  the  baggage  train  of  the  division  was  on  the  move. 
But  there  was  no  haste  or  confusion,  everything  was 
being  conducted  with  the  greatest  order.  Only  the 
women  showed  signs  of  nervousness,  glancing  back 
with  frightened  looks  toward  the  north,  from  which 
we  now  heard  the  uninterrupted  thunder  of  the  guns. 


The  Battle  of  the  Morava         57 

It  was  clear  that  a  few  miles  off  a  furious  battle  was 
raging. 

But  a  second  line  of  hills  hid  the  actual  battle- 
field, and  it  was  only  half  an  hour  later  when  we  had 
breasted  the  second  ascent  that  it  came  in  siight. 
Once  we  had  attained  the  summit  a  marvellous 
panorama  burst  upon  our  view.  At  our  fact  was  a 
rolling  plain  shut  in  right  and  left  by  high  hills 
through  which  we  could  see  a  river  wending.  This 
was  the  famous  valley  of  the  Morava  through  which 
for  centuries  has  poured  the  tide  of  invasion.  Away 
on  the  horizon  we  could  faintly  distinguish  the  gleam 
of  water  showing  the  course  of  the  Danube.  In  the 
centre  of  the  panorama,  on  the  Hungarian  side  of 
the  Danube,  was  a  pyramid-shaped  mountain.  Here, 
I  was  told,  was  the  headquarters  of  Field-Marshal 
von  Mackensen,  who  was  directing  the  operations  of 
the  invading  force.  Right  opposite,  between  us  and 
the  Danube,  in  the  middle  distance,  was  another  line 
of  low  hills  running  transversely  across  the  valley. 
This  was  studded  here  and  there  with  clumps  of  trees 
and  small  woods,  among  which  could  be  seen  the 
roofs  of  several  villages.  Near  the  crests  were  the 
Serbian  batteries  in  action  against  the  German  forces 
advancing  from  the  Danube  to  force  the  entry  of 
the  valley.  We  could  not  see  the  guns,  but  the  short, 
sharp  spurts  of  flame  from  their  muzzles  disclosed 
their  positions.  The  villages,  several  of  which  were 
ablaze,  were  being  held  by  the  Serbian  infantry,  while 
behind  the  clumps  of  trees  we  could  see  an  occasional 
regiment  of  cavalry  under  cover. 


58         From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

But  nothing  could  have  withstood  the  tremendous 
fire  of  the  German  heavy  guns.  The  enemy  had 
managed,  at  the  price  of  endless  difficulties,  to  trans- 
port a  number  of  their  monstrous  cannon  to  the  right 
bank  of  the  Danube,  and  these  were  hammering  the 
Serbian  lines.  Huge  shells  from  the  thirty-eight  centi- 
metre guns  were  pounding  the  crest  of  the  hills,  which 
were  smoking  like  volcanoes  as  these  enormous  pro- 
jectiles burst.  So  tremendous  was  their  effect  that 
the  crests  were  changing  their  shape  before  our  eyes. 

As  one  gun  after  another  came  into  action  the 
Serbian  position  became  untenable.  They  had  no 
artillery  with  which  they  could  make  effective  reply 
to  ordnance  of  this  calibre,  and  we  could  see  the  long 
lines  of  grey-coated  infantry  winding  down  the  slope, 
using  woods,  ditches  and  the  ruined  villages  as  cover 
from  the  murderous  fire  of  the  enemy.  A  minute 
or  two  later  a  tremendous  explosion  shook  the  air, 
and  a  couple  of  miles  away  a  pillar  of  black  smoke 
mounted  slowly  into  the  sky.  The  Serbs  had  blown 
up  the  last  bridge  across  the  Morava.  Long  lines  of 
German  infantry  began  to  appear  on  the  opposite 
crest.  A  couple  of  Serbian  battalions  marched  up  to 
the  line  of  hills  from  which  we  were  viewing  the 
German  advance.  They  immediately  set  to  work  to 
throw  up  a  line  of  trenches.  They  were  the  rear- 
guard of  the  Serbian  force,  whose  task  was  to  cover 
the  retreat  of  the  Serbian  division.  Looking  back- 
ward along  the  road  to  Palanka,  we  could  see  that 
the  endless  line  of  baggage  wagons  had  been  replaced 
by  long  columns  of  infantry.   The  German  guns  were 


The  Battle  of  the  Morava         59 

still  thundering  on  the  front,  and  fresh  masses  of 
infantry  were  arriving  on  the  crest  of  the  hill  and 
preparing  to  pour  down  the  slope. 

Von  Mackensen  had  forced  the  entry  of  tlie  valley 
of  the  Morava. 


CHAPTER  IV 

'      THE    FALL   OF    NISH    AND    KRAGUYEVATZ 

WHEN  it  became  clear  that  the  Germans  had 
forced  the  entrance  to  the  valley  of  the 
Morava,  I  left  the  fighting  line  to  return  to  Palanka. 
The  chauffeur  of  our  automobile  was  a  stranger  to 
the  district,  and  lost  his  way  while  traversing  a  small 
forest.  Just  as  we  were  about  to  emerge  from  this 
a  sergeant  and  a  couple  of  men,  reconnoitring  on  the 
edge  of  the  wood,  rushed  into  the  middle  of  the  path 
and  made  signs  to  us  to  stop.  We  were,  they  ex- 
plained, making  straight  for  the  German  lines.  With 
some  difficulty  we  turned  the  automobile  on  the  nar- 
row pathway  and  retraced  our  steps. 

The  long  detour  we  were  then  forced  to  make 
before  we  gained  the  highway  to  Palanka  took  so 
much  time  that  when  we  reached  it  we  found  the 
German  artillery  had  been  put  in  battery  on  the  crest 
of  a  range  of  hills,  about  three  miles  away.  Seeing 
two  staff  automobiles,  they  promptly  opened  fire.  The 
first  shrapnel  burst  about  two  hundred  and  fifty  yards 
beyond  us,  just  over  a  group  of  soldiers.  The  second 
burst  fifty  yards  or  so  behind  us.  Just  as  I  expected 
that  they  would  find  the  range  with  the  third  shot, 
we  entered  a  cutting  which  concealed  us  from  view. 

60 


The  Fall  of  Nish  and  Kraguyevatz    6i 

Here  we  stopped  to  take  a  soldier  on  board  who  had 
been  somewhat  badly  wounded  in  the  head  by  the 
first  shrapnel,  and  conducted  him  to  the  nearest  ambu- 
lance. 

En  route  to  Palanka  I  went  to  pay  my  respects  to 
Colonel  Terzitch,  the  Commander  of  the  Division  of 
the  Shumadia,  at  the  village  where  he  had  established 
his  headquarters.  He  invited  me  to  dine  with  him 
and  his  Staff,  but  said  the  hour  would  depend  on  how 
long  it  took  him  and  his  Chief  of  Staff  to  draw  up  the 
plan  of  operations  for  the  morrow  and  issue  his 
orders.  I  spent  the  intervening  time  in  strolling  about 
the  village  (the  name  of  which  has  slipped  my 
memory)  which  enjoys,  I  was  told,  the  proud  honour 
of  being  the  largest  village  community  in  Serbia.  It 
is  certainly  one  of  the  most  prosperous-looking,  but 
this  is  not  surprising,  as  the  valley  of  the  Morava 
has  the  reputation  of  being  the  most  fertile  in  the 
kingdom.  Its  inhabitants  are  said  to  be  the  richest 
peasants  in  the  country. 

The  headquarters  of  the  division  were  installed  in 
the  village  school-house.  The  mess  was  the  most 
democratic  I  ever  saw.  With  Colonel  Terzitch,  his 
Chief  of  Staff  and  other  officers,  sat  down  the  non- 
commissioned officers  and  the  men  acting  as  secre- 
taries and  orderlies.  All  ate  the  same  fare,  the  only 
difference  being  that  at  the  officers'  table  wine  was 
served.  Colonel  Terzitch  is  one  of  the  most  cele- 
brated and  capable  soldiers  in  the  Serbian  Army  (he 
was  later  Minister   of    War),   and   his   division,   re- 


62         From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

cruited  in  the  valley  of  the  Shumadia,  was  as  cele- 
brated as  its  chief. 

During  the  meal  he  communicated  to  me  some 
details  of  the  forces  attacking  his  division.  These 
consisted  of  three  divisions,  and  were  two  divisions 
of  the  Third  German  Army  Corps,  commanded  by 
General  von  Lochow,  and  the  46th  Division  of  the 
Twenty-Third  Army  Corps.  The  infantry  divisions 
of  the  Third  Army  Corps  were  the  6th,  under  General 
Meyer  von  Radek,  and  the  25th,  under  General 
von  Jarrolski.  The  6th  Division  was  made  up  of  the 
20th,  24th  and  64th  Regiments  of  Infantry  and  a 
battalion  of  "Jaeger"  or  light  infantry,  the  3rd,  i8th 
and  39th  Regiments  of  Artillery  and  the  3rd  Regi- 
ment of  Cavalry.  The  25th  Reserve  Division  was 
made  up  of  the  i68th  Active  Regiment  and  the  83rd 
and  113th  Reserve  Regiments,  the  13th  and  25th  Reg- 
iments of  Artillery  and  the  4th  Reserve  Regiment  of 
Dragoons. 

The  46th  Reserve  Division,  which  completed  the 
force,  was  composed  of  the  214th,  215th  and  216th 
Reserve  Regiments  of  Infantry,  two  regiments  of 
artillery  and  a  regiment  of  cavalry.  It  had  evidently 
been  hastily  improvised  for  the  Serbian  campaign,  as 
the  troops  composing  it  had  been  brought  from  Ypres 
and  Arras  on  the  French  front  and  Brest-Litovsk  on 
the   Russian   front. 

The  Serbian  casualties  for  the  day,  Colonel  Ter- 
zitch  informed  me,  had  been  just  under  300  men 
killed.  The  total  killed  in  the  three  days'  fighting  had 
been  over   twelve  hundred.    The   Germans   outnum- 


The  Fall  of  Nish  and  Kraguyevatz    63 

bered  the  Serbians  by  two  and  a  half  to  one.  In  spite 
of  the  crushing  superiority  of  the  enemy  the  Serbians 
fought  with  courage  and  confidence,  defending  their 
positions  foot  by  foot. 

As  I  was  anxious  to  leave  for  Nish  I  took  leave  of 
Colonel  Terzitch  about  ten  o'clock  and  started  for 
Palanka.  Rain  was  coming  down  in  torrents,  and  the 
whole  countryside  had  become  a  quagmire.  The  auto- 
mobile churned  its  way,  up  to  the  axles  in  mud,  for 
five  or  six  miles  or  so,  and  then  came  to  a  standstill, 
completely  bogged.  We  obtained  the  aid  of  a  passing 
oxen  team,  but  even  its  efforts  failed  to  move  the  car. 
There  was  nothing  for  it  but  to  abandon  our  vehicle. 
A  couple  of  hundred  yards  further  we  came  across  an 
empty  motor  ambulance.  This  was  still  able  to  move, 
so  we  got  in,  and  slowly  and  with  difficulty  we 
ploughed  our  way  to  the  station,  taking  over  an  hour 
to  cover  the  three  miles. 

At  Palanka  there  was  no  train  and  the  station- 
master  could  not  tell  me  when  there  would  be  one,  as 
the  military  transport  practically  monopolized  the  line. 
Telegraphic  inquiries  revealed  the  fact  that  our  train 
was  side-tracked  two  stations  away,  but  as  to  when 
it  would  reach  Palanka  no  one  could  say.  The  rain 
was  coming  down  in  torrents.  The  only  haven  of 
refuge  was  the  station-master's  office,  which  a  stove, 
heated  red-hot,  had  brought  to  the  temperature  of  a 
Turkish  bath.  As  I  had  had  no  sleep  for  thirty-six 
hours  I  dragged  a  mail-bag  from  a  corner  to  act  as  a 
pillow,  and  lay  down  on  the  floor.  I  got  up  every  hour 
or  two  to  see  what  prospects  we  had  of  getting  away, 


64         From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

but  each  time  found  the  same  monotonous  procession 
of  mihtary  trains  rolHng  through  the  station. 

To  pass  the  time  I  got  the  telegraph  operator  to  ring 
up  his  colleagues  up  and  down  the  line,  and  thus  got 
the  latest  news  and  rumours,  especially  rumours,  for 
there  seemed  to  be  a  dearth  of  reliable  news.  Strum- 
nitza,  we  heard,  was  in  the  hands  of  the  Bulgarians, 
who  had  blown  up  the  bridges  on  either  side  of  the 
town,  so  that  railway  communication  with  Salonica 
was  definitely  cut.  Nish  was  still  in  the  hands  of  the 
Serbians,  but  was  emptying  fast,  the  inhabitants  flee- 
ing by  thousands.  But  Pirot  was  still  holding  out,  so 
that  the  immediate  occupation  of  Nish  was  not  likely. 

As  by  midday  there  was  still  no  sign  of  our  train,  I 
and  a  couple  of  French  army  surgeons  determined  to 
go  to  the  village  for  lunch.  Here  we  found  every- 
thing in  confusion.  The  inhabitants  were  hastily  load- 
ing their  belongings  on  carts  and  wagons  and  getting 
ready  to  flee.  At  the  inn  we  managed  to  get  some 
food,  but  had  to  wait  till  the  landlord  unpacked  knives 
and  spoons  from  the  wagon  in  the  courtyard  on  which 
his  household  possessions  were  piled  prepared  for 
flight.  The  Germans,  we  were  told,  were  only  about 
seven  miles  distant,  and  the  occupation  of  Palanka 
was  expected  the  following  morning.  While  we  were 
still  lunching  a  messenger  arrived  from  the  station- 
master  to  say  that  the  long-expected  train  had  at  last 
arrived,  and  requesting  us  to  make  haste.  Five 
minutes  later  we  were  at  last  en  route  for  Nish. 

Though  the  distance  is  only  about  60  miles,  we  were 
sixteen  hours  in  performing  the  journey.    The  train 


The  Fall  of  Nish  and  KraguyevatZv   65 

was  filled  with  refugees,  who  had  fled  from  the  Dan- 
ube towns  during  the  bombardment.  In  my  compart- 
ment were  three  young  girls,  school  teachers  at  Bel- 
grade, who  passed  the  time  singing  the  national  ballads 
of  Serbia.  The  music  of  these  is  singularly  beautiful, 
with  an  underlying  note  of  sadness  characteristic  of 
all  Slav  melodies. 

It  was  six  o'clock  in  the  morning  when  we  arrived 
at  Nish.  The  station  was  crowded  with  people  waiting 
to  leave,  but  the  greatest  order  prevailed.  There  was 
no  sign  of  panic.  Just  outside  the  station  I  met  a  Staff 
Colonel  of  my  acquaintance.  He  told  me  he  and  an- 
other officer  were  leaving  for  Salonica  with  dispatches 
for  General  Sarrail.  As  the  Nish-Salonica  line  was 
cut  they  were  going  by  automobile  to  Monastir,  and 
thence  by  rail  to  Salonica.  He  told  me  that  Pirot  had 
fallen,  and  that  the  Bulgarians  were  advancing  on 
Nish.  In  the  south  they  were  marching  on  Uskub.  In 
the  north,  in  addition  to  Field-Marshal  von  Macken- 
sen's  army,  which  I  had  seen  force  the  entrance  to  the 
valley  of  the  Morava,  a  second  German  Army  under 
General  von  Gallwitz  was  advancing  on  Kraguyevatz. 
An  Austrian  force  assembled  in  Bosnia  was  preparing 
to  invade  Serbia  from  that  side.  The  country  was, 
therefore,  being  attacked  from  north,  east  and  south. 
The  250,000  Serbians  were  face  to  face  with  300,000 
Germans  and  Austrians  and  400,000  Bulgarians.  All 
telegraphic  and  postal  communication  with  the  out- 
side world,  except  via  Monastir,  was  now  cut,  and 
even  the  Monastir  route  was  threatened.  When  this 
was   cut   our   isolation   would   be   complete.      By   the 


66         From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

irony  of  fate  the  wireless  installation  at  Nish,  the  only 
one  in  Serbia  capable  of  communicating  with  Salon- 
ica,  had  been  completed  and  sent  its  first  message  only 
three  days  before,  and  already  it  would  have  to  be 
destroyed. 

The  Government  and  the  Banque  Franco-Serbe  had 
left  for  Kraljevo.  Greece  had  finally  betrayed  her  ally 
and  refused  to  fulfil  her  treaty  obligations  zns-d-vis 
Serbia.  The  excuse  given  was  that  the  treaty  only  pro- 
vided for  Greece  coming  to  the  aid  of  Serbia  if  she 
was  attacked  by  Bulgaria  alone,  but  did  not  provide 
for  any  assistance  in  case  that  country  was  aided  by 
other  Powers.  This,  of  course,  was  a  mere  quibble,  in- 
vented to  excuse  Greek  desertion.  "The  fiasco  made 
in  Bulgaria  by  the  diplomacy  of  the  Allies,"  the 
Colonel  added,  "had  undoubtedly  helped  to  bring 
about  this  change  of  view  in  Greece."  At  this  moment 
the  automobile  with  the  other  of^cer  arrived.  The 
Colonel  shook  hands,  entered  it,  and  was  off  on  his 
long  journey  tO'  the  Greek  frontier. 

My  only  anxiety  now  was  to  get  my  baggage  and 
take  the  train  to  Kraljevo,  to  find  the  Banque  Franco- 
Serbe  and  the  members  of  the  Government.  I  was 
afraid  that  my  landlady,  an  ancient  dame  of  about 
seventy-five  years,  might  have  joined  the  exodus,  but 
to  my  relief  I  found  her  still  at  home,  and  my  baggage 
intact.  She  greeted  me  in  voluble  Serbian,  and  was 
evidently  expressing  her  delight  at  my  safe  return.  At 
the  post-office  I  found  a  few  officials  still  at  their 
posts,  though  they  now  enjoyed  sinecures  as  far,  at 
least,  as  letters  were  concerned.    A  few  wires  were 


The  Fall  of  Nish  and  Kraguyevatz    67 

still  working  for  official  messages,  but  the  operators 
were  ready  to  cut  them  and  remove  the  instruments  at 
a  moment's  notice.  At  the  Bella  Kaphana  I  found 
the  former  crowd  had  disappeared.  A  score  or  so  of 
people  were  lunching  in  depressing  silence.  Anxiety 
was  everywhere  apparent.  No  newspapers  had  been 
published  for  four  days,  and  as  the  official  Press 
Bureau  had  accompanied  the  Government,  we  had 
not  even  its  typewritten  bulletins  for  our  information. 

The  situation  was  undoubtedly  growing  more 
desperate  every  hour.  The  Headquarters  Staff,  I 
heard,  was  preparing  to  leave  Kraguyevatz  for 
Krushevatz  and  measures  were  being  taken  to  destroy 
the  Arsenal  and  all  its  contents.  The  wounded  who 
could  be  moved  had  already  been  evacuated.  As  I  had 
hardly  had  any  sleep  for  three  days,  I  determined  to 
pass  the  night  in  Nish  and  leave  the  next  day  for 
Kraljevo.  Some  timorous  souls  foretold  that  when  I 
awoke  I  would  find  the  Bulgarians  in  possession  of  the 
town,  but  I  had  long  ago  learnt  to  discount  such 
prophecies.  I  knew  that  the  garrison  which  had 
evacuated  Pirot  was  fighting  a  rearguard  action  in  the 
mountains  to  the  east,  and  that  it  would  take  the  Bul- 
garians at  least  another  forty-eight  hours  to  reach 
Nish. 

The  next  evening,  accordingly,  after  the  usual 
interminable  wait  at  the  railway  station,  I  left  for 
Kraljevo.  I  had  to  change  at  Stalatch  and  asked  the 
guard  to  warn  me  when  we  got  there,  as  the  officials 
had  long  ago  ceased  to  call  out  the  names  of  stations. 
He  promised  to  do  so,  but  failed  to  keep  his  word, 


68         From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

with  the  resnh  that  I  passed  Stalatch.  I  got  out  at 
Parachin,  a  station  further  on,  where  I  had  the 
pleasure  of  waiting  seven  hours  for  a  train  back  to 
Stalatch.  Here  I  had  to  remain  all  night  waiting  a 
train  to  Kraljevo,  which  I  reached  about  four  o'clock 
in  the  afternoon. 

My  first  visit  was  to  the  Banque  Franco-Serbe, 
which  I  found  established  in  a  deserted  villa,  the 
cashier  installed  behind  a  kitchen  table.  As  he  told 
me  he  had  no  idea  how  long  the  bank  would  remain 
in  Kraljevo'  or  where  it  would  go  on  leaving  that  town 
I  drew  out  my  total  fortune,  about  a  couple  of  thou- 
sand dinars,  which  I  knew  would  have  to  last  me 
till  I  reached  the  outer  world. 

The  next  problem  was  to  find  lodgings.  The  15,000 
inhabitants  of  Kraljevo  had  been  reinforced  by  over 
60,000  refugees.  Every  house  and  cafe  was  filled  to 
overflowing,  but  finally  after  a  long  search  I  managed, 
by  paying  Savoy  Hotel  prices,  to  obtain  a  wretched 
room  in  a  tenth-rate  inn.  The  unfortunate  diplomatic 
corps  had  found  quarters  as  best  it  could,  and  lunched 
and  dined  in  the  public  room  of  the  Hotel  de  I'Europe, 
a  third-rate  hostelry  where  there  were  no  cloths  on  the 
tables  and  where  the  serviettes  were  sadly  in  need  of 
the  wash-tub. 

Here,  to  my  surprise,  I  met  a  confrere  in  the  person 
of  M.  Paul  du  Bochet,  a  young  French  Swiss  who 
was  correspondent  of  the  Petit  Parisien.  He  and  I 
with  M.  Henry  Barby  of  the  Journal,  of  Paris,  were 
the  only  foreign  members  of  the  Fourth  Estate  left 
in  Serbia.    Du  Bochet  had  been  in  Cettinje  when  the 


The  Fall  of  Nish  and  Kraguyevatz    69 

news  of  the  Austro-German  invasion  reached  him,  and 
had  hurried  at  once  from  the  Montenegrin  capital  to 
join  the  Serbian  Army.  He  had  first  gone  south  and 
had  reached  Uskub,  but  only  to  find  that  it  was  being 
evacuated.  He  left  in  the  last  train  for  Prisrend  and 
Mitrovitza,  and  after  four  days'  constant  travelling 
had  reached  Kraljevo,  Here  he  learned  that  the  Head- 
quarters Staff  had  left  Kraguyevatz  for  Krushevatz, 
as  the  former  town  was  now  seriously  menaced  by 
General  von  Gallwitz's  army, 

I  told  him  it  was  my  intention  to  proceed  to  Head- 
quarters and  get  a  permit  to  return  to  the  front.  We 
arranged  to  go  together,  and  left  next  afternoon,  ar- 
riving just  in  time  for  the  evening  mess  of  the  Head- 
quarters Staff.  During  the  meal  we  heard  the  latest 
news.  Kraguyevatz  was  seriously  menaced  and  might 
fall  at  any  moment.  Automobile  transport  and  the 
railways  were  working  night  and  day  to  save  what 
they  could  of  the  contents  of  the  Arsenal.  All  that 
could  not  be  saved  would  be  destroyed.  Uskub  had 
been  captured  by  the  Bulgarians,  the  English  Ambu- 
lance Corps  under  Lady  Paget  being  taken  prisoners, 
as  she  had  refused  to  leave  her  wounded.  Nish  was 
now  also  in  the  hands  of  the  Bulgarians,  while  von 
Mackensen's  army  was  forcing  its  way  down  the 
valley  of  the  Morava  to  effect  a  junction  with  them. 
Once  this  was  done,  the  road  to  Constantinople  would 
be  open  and  the  Germans  would  be  able  to  send  muni- 
tions to  Turkey  for  want  of  which  her  resistance  was 
about  to  collapse.  This  would  settle  the  fate  of  the 
Gallipoli  expedition. 


70         From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

The  Serbian  troops  of  the  First  Army  under  the 
Voivode  Zhivoin  Mishitch,  facing  von  Gallwitz's 
army,  after  abandoning  Kraguyevatz,  would  retreat 
on  Kraljevo,  while  the  Second  and  Third  Armies, 
under  the  Voivode  Stepanovitch  and  General 
Yurishitch-Sturm,  would  fall  back  on  Krushevatz. 
This  would  bring  the  Serbian  Army  into  a  critical 
position,  as  it  would  then  have  its  back  to  the  range 
of  mountains  which  at  this  point  traverse  Serbia  from 
east  to  west,  and  through  which  there  are  only  two 
passes,  one  rurming  from  Krushevatz  to  Kurshoumlia, 
and  the  other  from  Kraljevo  tO'  Mitrovitza  via  Rashka. 
This  operation  would  be  like  pouring  a  hundred  gallon 
cask  through  the  neck  of  a  pint  bottle. 

Once  the  Serbian  armies  had  crossed  this  range 
of  mountains  they  would  have  left  Old  Serbia,  that 
is  tO'  say,  Serbia  as  it  existed  before  the  war  with 
Turkey,  and  would  be  driven  into  the  Sandjak  of 
Novi  Bazaar,  a  territory  which  only  four  short  years 
before  was  under  the  rule  of  the  Sultan.  The  only 
hope  of  avoiding  this  disaster  was  that  the  Second  and 
Third  Armies  would  check  the  further  advance  of  the 
German  Army  descending  the  valley  of  the  Morava. 
Of  that,  in  view  of  the  enormous  superiority  of  the 
German  forces,  there  seemed  little  prospect.  However, 
as  there  seemed  just  a  fighting  chance  that  the  miracle 
might  be  accomplished,  du  Bochet  and  I  determined  to 
push  forward  and  join  the  Second  Army. 

The  task  of  the  Government  was  now  one  of 
colossal  difficulty.  One  third  of  the  kingdom  was  in 
the  hands  of  the  Germans  and  Austrians.     Hundreds 


The  Fall  of  Nish  and  Kraguyevatz    71 

of  thousands  of  people  had  left  their  homes  and  were 
pouring  south,  crowding  towns  and  villages.  The 
advance  of  the  Bulgarians  on  the  east  and  south  was 
driving  another  section  of  the  people  toward  the  west 
and  north.  It  was  clear  that  almost  the  entire  popu- 
lation of  the  country  would  soon  be  congregated  in  the 
Sandjalv  of  Novi  Bazaar  with  its  back  to  the  Albanian 
and  Montenegrin  frontier. 

In  addition  as  mile  after  mile  of  the  railways  fell 
into  the  hands  of  the  enemy  the  rolling  stock  was 
pouring  down  from  the  north  and  up  from  the  east 
and  south,  congesting  what  still  remained  in  Serbian 
hands.  Every  siding  was  full  to  overflowing  and  still 
the  mass  of  trucks  and  passenger  cars  kept  accumulat- 
ing. As  a  consequence,  as  the  line  is  a  single  track, 
on  which  the  up-trains  must  be  side-tracked  to  let  the 
down-trains  pass,  the  congestion  threatened  to  bring 
the  traffic  to  a  standstill. 

Our  first  difficulty  was  one  of  transport.  As  we 
could  no  longer  count  on  the  railway,  either  a  horse 
or  ox  drawn  vehicle  was  necessary.  As  we  had  now  no 
certainty  of  being  able  to  return  to  any  town  once  we 
had  left  it  we  had  to  be  prepared  to  take  our  baggage 
with  us.  I  had  reduced  mine  to  the  smallest  possible 
quantity.  Du  Bochet  had  even  less,  as  on  going  to 
Montenegro  he  had  left  his  main  baggage  at  Kraguy- 
evatz and  it  would,  in  a  few  hours,  in  all  probability  be 
in  the  hands  of  the  Germans. 

But  transport  was  difficult  to  find.  All  the  horses 
and  carriages  worth  taking  had  long  ago  been  re- 
quisitioned by  the  military  authorities.    We  hunted 


72         From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

high  and  low  for  two  days.  At  length  we  discovered 
an  ancient  carriage  in  a  deplorable  state  of  repair,  and 
a  couple  of  horses  which  the  army  had  disdained. 
The  wheels  and  springs  of  the  carriage  seemed  sound, 
however,  and  that  was  the  main  thing.  It  was  more, 
however,  than  I  could  say  for  the  horses.  One  I  found 
was  completely  blind,  and  the  other  seemed  badly 
broken-winded.  As  we  intended  always  to  leave  the 
vehicle  a  safe  distance  from  the  fighting-line  and  ride 
the  animals  when  actually  at  the  front,  the  blind  ani- 
mal was  useless.  After  some  search  a  third  animal  was 
discovered,  a  weedy,  giraffe-like  chestnut.  It  was  an 
Austrian  horse  captured  during  the  first  campaign.  It 
had  been  badly  wounded  in  the  chest  by  a  shell  splinter 
and  was  in  no  way  a  desirable  acquisition,  but  it  was  a 
case  of  Hobson's  choice.  For  the  carriage  and  the 
two  Rosinantes,  with  the  harness  and  a  couple  of 
ancient  riding  saddles,  the  price  was  i,ioo  dinars, 
about  twice  their  value.  But  it  was  that  or  nothing,  so 
we  had  to  make  the  best  of  a  bad  job.  As  the  horses 
looked  half -starved  we  decided  to  give  them  a  twenty- 
four  hours'  rest  and  good  feeding  before  starting. 

On  the  afternoon  of  Tuesday,  November  2nd,  we 
left  Krushevatz  in  search  of  the  Second  Army.  In 
the  forenoon  we  lunched  at  the  mess  of  the  Head- 
quarters Staff.  We  found  that  orders  had  been  given 
for  it  to  leave  Krushevatz  for  Rashka  in  the  Sandjak 
of  Novi  Bazaar,  half  way  between  Kraljevo  and 
Mitrovitza.  News  had  been  received  of  the  fall  of 
Kraguyevatz.  The  army  had  not  been  able  to  save  an 
enormous  mass  of   war   material   which   had   to  be 


The  Fall  of  Nish  and  Kraguyevatz    73 

destroyed.  This  included  ten  thousand  tents,  thou- 
sands of  uniforms,  hundreds  of  thousands  of  cart- 
ridges and  thousands  of  shells.  The  Serbian  Govern- 
ment rifle  and  gun  factory  installed  at  a  cost  of  several 
million  francs  had  been  blown  up. 

The  Government  and  the  Diplomatic  Corps  had 
resumed  their  nomadic  existence,  and  had  left 
Kraljevo  for  Mitrovitza.  The  position  of  the  un- 
fortunate foreign  diplomatists  was  not  an  enviable 
one.  They  had  no  means  either  of  communicating 
with  their  governments  or  receiving  instructions  from 
them.  But  the  inexorable  advance  of  the  German 
and  Bulgarian  Armies  drove  them  from  one  town 
to  another.    Each  time  the  change  was  for  the  worse. 

It  was  about  three  o'clock  when  we  left  the  town. 
The  roads,  we  found,  were  in  a  frightful  condition. 
They  were,  for  the  most  part,  mere  cart  tracks  and 
perfect  seas  of  mud.  The  carriage  half  the  time  was 
ploughing  through  twO'  feet  of  tenacious  clay.  Twice 
it  stuck  fast  up  to  the  axles,  and  was  only  extricated 
with  the  friendly  aid  of  a  passing  bullock  team. 

Both  our  horses,  the  giraffe-like  chestnut,  whose 
name  was  Julius,  and  his  partner  (which  I  had  named 
Caesar),  a  flea-bitten  grey,  regarded  Serbian  mud  and 
the  effort  it  entailed  on  them  with  profound  dis- 
approval. 

Just  at  the  point  where  the  road  from  Krushevatz 
joins  the  main  road  running  to  Stalatch  I  came  across 
half  a  dozen  British  soldiers  belonging  to  the  heavy 
battery  which  defended  Belgrade.  They  were  seated 
at  the  roadside  preparing  the  inevitable  pot  of   tea 


74         From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

without  which  Tommy  Atkins's  happiness  is  not  com- 
plete. They  told  me  their  battery  had  been  en  route 
for  Nish  and  that  the  guns  had  already  been  entrained 
at  Stalatch.  They  were  covering  the  intervening  sixty 
kilometres  in  a  couple  of  bullock  carts.  They  were 
profoundly  ignorant  of  what  was  happening  in  Serbia 
or  the  outside  world,  but  were  correspondingly 
cheerful. 

They  insisted  on  our  sharing  their  tea,  and  produced 
a  pot  of  the  equally  inevitable  marmalade,  which 
they  proudly  declared  was  one  of  the  few  objects 
which  had  survived  the  bombardment  of  Belgrade. 
I  left  them  loading  up  their  wagon  and  giving  orders 
to  their  drivers  in  weird  but  apparently  effective 
Serbian. 

It  was  dark  when  we  reached  Chichevatz,  the  first 
stage  on  our  journey;  a  collision  with  the  parapet  of 
a  bridge  broke  a  splinter  bar  of  the  carriage  and 
forced  us  to  halt  for  the  night.  The  problem  was 
to  find  quarters  and  food.  Every  village  behind  the 
front  was  filled  tO'  overflowing  with  the  fugitive  pop- 
ulation from  the  country  held  by  the  Germans.  Every 
public  edifice  was  crammed;  people  were  sleeping  on 
straw,  twenty  in  a  room,  in  every  available  house.  At 
the  village  inn  the  food  supply  resolved  itself  into  the 
inevitable  "Schnitzel,"  which  in  the  present  instance 
was  a  badly  burnt  piece  of  pork.  We  were,  however, 
fortunate  enough  to  find  the  local  station-master  at 
the  inn,  who  hospitably  offered  us  a  bedroom  in  the 
railway  station. 

When  we  got  there  we  noticed  that  he  had  already 


The  Fall  of  Nish  and  Kraguyevatz    75 

begun  to  pack  up  ready  to  leave.  With  him  was  a 
young  official  of  the  Ministry  of  Commerce,  who 
had  been  sent  tO'  destroy  the  stores  and  rolling  stock. 
Chichevatz  was  the  point  at  which  the  Serbian  rail- 
way stores  were  kept.  More  than  a  hundred  wagons 
had  been  loaded  with  accessories,  including  scores  of 
typewriters,  paper  and  bureau  materials,  uniforms, 
etc.,  but  it  was  found  impossible  to  move  them,  as 
every  siding  between  Stalatch  and  Nish  was  so  crowd- 
ed that  there  was  not  room  for  a  single  additional  car. 

When  everything  was  lost  on  this  section  it  was, 
I  was  told,  the  intention  of  the  Serbian  authorities 
to  fill  the  whole  track  from  Chichevatz  to  Nish  with 
rolling  stock  from  one  end  to  the  other  and  blow 
up  all  the  bridges,  so  as  to  render  the  line  unworkable. 
The  new  American  engines,  which  were  only  delivered 
in  191 5,  were  placed  in  a  long  tunnel  on  a  side  line, 
and  each  end  of  the  tunnel  blown  up,  so  as  to  entomb 
them  undamaged. 

The  news  from  the  front  was  not  encouraging.  The 
Germans  were  advancing  slowly  but  surely.  The  great 
disappointment  to  the  Serbian  population  had  been  the 
failure  to  check  the  advance  at  Bagrdan.  Bagrdan  is 
in  the  line  of  mountains  to  the  east  of  Kraguyevatz, 
and  its  strength  as  a  military  position  is  legendary  in 
Serbia.  For  fifty  years  the  Serbian  nation  had  re- 
garded Bagrdan  as  the  bulwark  that  would  check 
invasion.  That  it  failed  to  check  the  German  advance 
greatly  depressed  army  and  people. 

The  failure  of  the  Bagrdan  defence  to  accomplish 
that  is  not  surprising.    The  Germans  were  just  as 


76         From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

well  aware  of  the  strength  of  the  position  as  the 
Serbians,  and  they  took  good  care  not  to  make  a 
frontal  attack  on  it.  They  simply  concentrated  enough 
force  on  the  position  to-  hold  the  Serbian  Army  in 
check  and  then,  making  use  of  their  superiority  in 
numbers,  they  sent  two  columns  to  turn  the  position. 
This  forced  the  Serbian  Army  to  fall  back. 

One  of  the  first  results  was  the  capture  by  the 
enemy  of  Kraguyevatz.  After  that  the  Germans 
steadily  advanced  on  each  bank  of  the  Morava.  Seven 
Serbian  divisions  opposing  eighteen  German  divisions 
were  odds  that  not  even  the  bravery  of  King  Peter's 
army  could  withstand.  All  night  long,  train  after 
train  rolled  through  the  station  loaded  with  military 
stores  and  packed  with  fleeing  peasants. 

Next  morning  the  station-master  roused  me  at  7.30 
o'clock  with  the  words:  "The  Germans  are  coming!" 
From  his  tone  one  could  have  supposed  the  cavalry 
were  at  the  outskirts.  The  real  reason  I  soon  dis- 
covered was  his  desire  that  I  should  evacuate  my  sleep- 
ing quarters,  as  an  ox-wagon  was  already  at  the  door 
to  transport  the  furniture  to  a  place  of  safety. 

We  determined  to  leave  the  carriage  there  and  ride 
to  the  front,  as  a  carriage  in  a  sudden  retreat  is  apt 
to  be  cumbersome.  We  accordingly  saddled  the  horses 
and  rode  to  Parachin,  twenty  kilometres  distant. 

Parachin  we  found  in  a  state  of  considerable  excite- 
ment. The  thunder  of  the  guns  drawing  nearer  and 
nearer  gave  evidence  of  the  approach  of  the  enemy. 
The  battle  was  raging  at  Chupria,  about  four  miles 
outside  the  town.   The  Second  Army  held  the  heights 


The  Fall  of  Nish  and  Kraguyevatz    77 

on  both  sides  of  the  valley,  opposed  to  a  force  of 
nearly  double  its  strength. 

The  German  tactics  were  simple  but  effective.  They 
opened  a  tremendous  and  apparently  indiscriminate 
fire  on  the  Serbian  position  from  guns  and  howitzers 
of  every  calibre.  I  noticed,  however,  that  they  no 
longer  possessed  the  tremendous  pieces  I  had  seen  in 
action  at  Palanka;  the  15-centimetre  gun  seemed  the 
heaviest  artillery  they  carried  with  them.  Shells  fell 
by  hundreds  on  every  square  mile  of  the  Serbian 
positions.  After  two  hours  or  so  of  this  indiscriminate 
bombardment  we  began  to  see  parties  of  infantry, 
from  twenty  to  fifty  strong,  pushing  forward.  When 
they  came  within  rifle-range  they  began  to  deploy  and 
opened  fire  on  the  Serbian  positions.  As  soon  as  the 
Serbian  infantry  began  to  reply,  a  field  telephone,  with 
which  each  of  the  German  advance  parties  was  armed, 
'phoned  back  the  exact  position  of  the  trenches  to  the 
artillery  in  the  rear.  An  instant  later  an  avalanche  of 
shrapnel  and  shell  was  poured  on  the  Serbian  lines, 
while  at  the  same  time  the  heavier  German  guns 
opened  a  "tir  de  barrage"  on  the  ground  two  miles  in 
the  Serbian  rear  to  hinder  the  movement  of  retreat  or 
prevent  reinforcements  being  brought  up. 

The  Serbian  infantry  complained  that  except  these 
advance  parties,  which  retired  as  soon  as  they  had 
made  the  Serbians  reveal  their  position,  they  hardly 
ever  saw  a  German  infantry  soldier,  and  had  to  retreat 
before  a  storm  of  shell  and  shrapnel.  It  was  clear  that 
the  capture  of  Chupria  was  only  a  matter  of  hours,  so 
we  decided  to  ride  back  to  Parachin. 


78         From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

As  the  Staff  of  the  Second  Army  was  expected  to 
arrive  in  that  town  that  evening  we  determined  to 
remain  there  over  night.  With  thirty  thousand 
refugees  in  a  town  of  twelve  thousand  inhabitants  it 
was  no  easy  matter  to  find  a  room,  but  the  Mayor 
kindly  had  a  deserted  house  broken  open  for  us,  and 
also,  which  was  even  more  important,  found  food 
and  stabling  for  our  horses.  Next  morning  the  people 
of  the  next-door  house  awakened  us  with  the  news 
that  the  Germans  were  attacking  the  town  and  that 
infantry  fire  was  clearly  audible. 

When  we  got  out  we  found  this  was  exaggeration 
but  that  the  Serbian  baggage  train  was  pouring 
through  the  town — a  clear  sign  that  the  retreat  had 
begun.  The  town  was  in  wild  excitement  for  two 
reasons — firstly,  on  account  of  the  approach  of  the 
Germans,  and  secondly,  because  orders  had  been  given 
to  distribute  tO'  the  inhabitants  everything  in  the  mili- 
tary stores  to  prevent  their  falling  into  the  hands  of 
the  enemy.  As  a  result  I  saw  hundreds  of  people  going 
about  carrying  dozens  of  pairs  of  boots,  uniforms, 
underclothing,  bread,  biscuits,  etc. 

At  midday,  the  provision  and  munition  columns 
having  safely  cleared  the  town.  General  Stepanovitch 
and  his  staff,  after  placing  a  strong  rearguard  to  delay 
the  German  advance  as  long  as  possible,  left  for  Raz- 
han,  a  town  about  twenty  miles  distant,  from  which  a 
road  led  to  the  entrance  to  the  mountain  pass  leading 
from  Krushevatz  to  Krushoumlia. 


CHAPTER  V 

FROM    CHICHEVATZ   TO    KRUSHEVATZ 

THE  return  journey  to  Chichevatz  was  unevent- 
ful, save  for  the  discovery  that  Caesar,  my 
mount,  in  addition  to  being  broken-winded,  seemed  to 
suffer  from  some  sort  of  heart  trouble,  which  induced 
him  to  lie  down  at  the  most  unexpected  moments.  I 
never  discovered  how  far  those  attacks  coincided 
with  a  mere  desire  for  repose.  I  noted  that  a  sharp 
application  of  my  riding  whip  contributed  remarkably 
to  his  speedy  recovery,  and  that  the  attacks  generally 
came  on  when  there  was  a  particularly  nasty  bit  of 
road  to  negotiate. 

Our  progress  was  slow,  as  the  road,  as  far  as  the 
eye  could  see,  was  blocked  by  moving  columns, 
infantry,  cavalry,  artillery,  baggage  wagons  and  pon- 
toon trains  pouring  like  a  flood  towards  the  mountains. 
The  Second  and  Third  Armies  were  now  in  full  retreat 
and  making  every  effort  to  gain  the  entrance  to  the 
pass  as  speedily  as  possible.  The  word  speed,  in  con- 
nection with  the  Serbian  Army,  has,  of  course,  only  a 
relative  value,  as  it  can  never  exceed  the  pace  set  by 
the  ox-wagons.  Speed  in  the  case  of  Serbian  troops 
has  therefore  been  replaced  by  prolongation  of  the 
effort,  so  as  to  cover  the  greatest  possible  distance  in 

79 


8o         From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

the  twenty-four  hours.  The  more  I  saw  of  the  Serbian 
oxen,  the  more  my  admiration  for  them  increased. 
They  seemed  tireless  and  their  powers  of  traction  were 
perfectly  marvellous.  The  wagons,  too,  I  found,  in 
spite  of  their  apparently  primitive  construction,  were 
marvels  of  strength  and  efficiency,  standing  an  amount 
of  wear  and  tear  that  would  have  wrecked  any  ordi- 
nary vehicle. 

The  problem  that  faced  Field-Marshal  Stepano- 
vitch  and  General  Yurishitch-Sturm  was  no  easy  one. 
It  was  to  transport  the  hundred  and  thirty  thousand 
men  of  the  Second  and  Third  Armies,  with  thirty 
thousand  bullock  wagons,  a  hundred  batteries  of 
artillery,  three  divisions  of  cavalry,  pontoon  trains, 
field  telegraph  and  telephone  sections,  munition 
columns,  and  the  thousand  and  one  things  that  form 
the  impedimenta  of  a  modern  army,  through  a  moun- 
tain defile  seventy  kilometres  in  length. 

The  entrance  to  this  pass  lies  just  outside 
Krushevatz,  and  it  runs  via  Jankova  Klissura  to 
Kurshoumlia,  a  few  miles  from  the  old  frontier  of 
the  Turkish  Sandjak  of  Novi  Bazaar,  annexed  by 
Serbia  after  the  defeat  of  the  Sultan's  armies  in  1912. 

On  account  of  the  encumbered  state  of  the  roads 
our  progress  was  slow.  Usually  when  mounted  we 
could  push  on  past  the  slow-moving  military  columns, 
but  in  the  present  instance  this  was  impossible,  as  a 
flood  of  peasants  and  their  families,  fleeing  from 
Chupria,  Parachin  and  a  score  of  other  villages,  filled 
the  road  on  either  side  of  the  marching  troops. 

Darkness  had  fallen  when  we  reached  Chichevatz. 


From  Chichevatz  to  Krushevatz      8i 

At  the  railway  station  we  found  the  station  house 
dismantled.  All  the  furniture  was  gone  and  the 
station-master's  aged  mother  was  cooking  the  evening 
meal  in  an  outhouse  in  which  a  deal  table  and  a  few 
chairs  had  been  placed  to  serve  as  a  temporary  dining- 
room.  A  section  of  engineers  had  arrived  to  blow  up 
the  bridge  and  fire  the  railway  wagons  filling  the  sid- 
ings before  the  arrival  of  the  Germans.  Telegraphic 
and  telephonic  communication  still  existed  on  the 
north  to  Chupria  and  on  the  south  to  Stalatch.  We 
were  thus  able  to  follow  the  progress  of  the  Germans 
hour  by  hour.  During  the  dinner  every  now  and  then 
the  telephone  bell  in  the  station  would  ring.  The 
station-master  picked  up  his  cap  and  went  out  to 
answer  it. 

The  first  messages  were  from  Chupria,  twenty-five 
kilometres  up  the  line.  "The  Germans  are  three  miles 
from  the  town,"  came  the  first  communication.  Then  a 
few  minutes  later :  "Shells  are  falling  all  round  the 
station.  We  are  getting  ready  to  leave."  Then  after 
an  interval  of  half  an  hour:  "This  is  our  last  message. 
The  telegraph  instruments  have  been  unscrewed  and 
loaded  on  the  train  with  all  the  personnel.  We  leave 
in  a  few  minutes." 

After  that  Chupria  was  silent  and  Parachin  (sixteen 
kilometres  away)  took  up  the  tale.  "The  sound  of  the 
guns  is  growing  louder  every  minute,"  it  telephoned, 
"Chupria  is  in  the  hands  of  the  enemy."  Half  an 
hour  later:  "Our  outposts  and  the  'Comitadjis'  "  (ir- 
regular Serbian  troops  who  on  account  of  their 
knowledge  of  the  country  generally  remain  in  contact 


82         From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

with  the  enemy  till  the  last)  "are  engaged  with  the 
German  advance  guard,"  Then,  in  thirty  minutes  or 
so,  came  the  welcome  news:  "The  Germans  seem  to 
have  halted  for  the  night.  The  gun  fire  has  almost 
ceased.  We  can  see  the  enemy's  bivouac  fires  all 
along  the  horizon." 

It  was  a  curious  feeling  thus  to  get  news  hour  by 
hour  of  the  advance  of  the  invaders.  It  was  like  a 
night  watch  by  the  bedside  of  someone  dying.  Bit 
by  bit  we  saw  the  last  fatal  moment  approaching. 
When  the  train  with  the  railway  personnel  arrived 
from  Chupria  we  got  a  few  more  details.  Field- 
Marshal  von  Mackensen  had  halted  his  army,  which 
had  been  engaged  from  dawn,  just  outside  Parachin, 
which  would  be  occupied  the  next  morning.  The 
train  took  a  few  refugees  from  Chichevatz  on  board 
and  then  trundled  off  slowly  to  Stalatch,  the  junction 
ten  kilometres  or  so  down  the  line. 

The  majority  of  the  inhabitants  of  Chichevatz,  we 
learned,  had  resolved  not  to  fly  but  to  await  the  arrival 
of  the  Germans.  In  this  they  showed  their  good  sense, 
as  they  would  have  gained  little  by  flight.  The  con- 
gestion caused  everywhere  by  the  exodus  of  the  popu- 
lation threatened  to  bring  about  a  national  catastrophe. 
As  the  country  still  in  the  hands  of  the  Serbians 
diminished,  the  mass  of  people  who  had  fled  from  the 
districts  invaded  by  the  Bulgarians  in  the  south  and 
east  and  by  the  Germans  and  Austrians  in  the  north 
was  daily  being  herded  closer  and  closer  together. 
Food  was  getting  scarce  and  lodgings  impossible  tc 
find.    And  this  on  the  threshold  of  winter.     Up  to 


From  Chichevatz  to  Krushevatz      83 

now  the  sheep,  oxen,  pigs  and  flour  that  the  fleeing 
population  had  been  able  to  take  with  them  had  kept 
them  alive,  but  these  provisions  were  rapidly  disap- 
pearing, and  then  starvation  would  stare  them  in  the 
face.  It  was  out  of  the  question  that  the  narrow  strip 
of  territory  into  which  they  were  being  slowly  but 
surely  forced  could  provide  food  for  hundreds  of 
thousands  of  starving  people. 

The  first  care  of  the  Government  was  to  provide 
for  the  needs  of  the  army  on  which  depended  the 
last  hopes  of  national  salvation.  Rations  had  to  be 
found  for  nearly  200,000  men  and  40,000  "Komord- 
jis"  (bullock-wagon  drivers),  and  forage  for  80,000 
oxen  and  20,000  horses.  To  increase  the  difficulties  of 
the  Government,  the  army  and  people  were  being 
forced  into  a  country  which  had  been  Serbian  for  but 
three  short  years,  and  of  which  the  administration  was 
still  in  its  initial  stages.  The  loyalty  of  the  Turkish 
and  Albanian  section  of  the  population  could  not  be 
altogether  depended  upon.  It  was  more  than  certain 
that  the  Turkish  section  (fortunately  a  small  minor- 
ity) would  regard  the  Germans,  being  allies  of  the 
Sultan,  as  their  deliverers.  It  was  under  such  cir- 
cumstances that  the  great  retreat  into  the  Sandjak  of 
Novi  Bazaar  and  the  newly-conquered  Albanian  terri- 
tories was  begun.  It  must  be  admitted  that  the  pros- 
pect was  far  from  brilliant. 

Of  the  Allies  in  Salonica  we  heard  little  or  nothing. 
An  attempt  by  the  French  to  advance  in  the  direction 
of  Uskub  had,  we  learned,  been  repulsed  by  the  Bul- 
garians.    The    Monastir-Salonica    railway    was    still 


84         From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

running,  but  it  was  seriously  threatened  and  might  be 
cut  at  any  moment.  Of  the  movements  of  the  British 
troops  in  Salonica  we  heard  nothing. 

All  this  did  not  make  for  cheerfulness  and  the 
dinner  was  a  depressing  affair.  As  it  was  certain  that 
the  Germans  could  not  arrive  in  Chichevatz  till  the 
following  evening,  I  determined,  about  midnight,  to 
go  bed.  This  is  a  fagon  de  parler,  as  sleeping  accom- 
modation there  was  none,  except  on  the  bare  boards  of 
the  rooms  of  the  station  house. 

At  this  instant  the  telephone  bell  rang  once  more. 
It  was  a  call  from  Stalatch  stating  that  a  railway  in- 
spector was  coming  up  on  an  engine  to  see  the  station- 
master.  As  Stalatch  was  only  a  quarter  of  an  hour 
distant  I  waited  till  he  arrived.  The  instructions  he 
brought  were  that  as  soon  as  the  train  with  the  per- 
sonnel from  Parachin  passed,  the  bridge  outside 
Chichevatz  station  was  to  be  blown  up  and  the  tele- 
graph and  telephone  instruments  were  to  be  unscrewed. 
The  loaded  trucks  on  the  sidings  were  to  be  given  over 
to  the  plunder  of  the  civil  population  and  then  every- 
thing that  remained  destroyed  by  fire  and  explosion. 
After  that  the  station  staff  was  to  get  on  a  train  and 
leave  for  Krushevatz.  All  the  railway  officials  and  the 
civil  functionaries  were  ordered  to  make  for  the  town 
of  Pristina,  about  a  hundred  and  twenty  miles  distant. 

About  half -past  twelve  I  went  up  to  a  room  on  the 
first  floor  of  the  station  house  and  made  up  a  bed  as 
well  as  I  could  out  of  a  mass  of  old  newspapers.  I  was 
not  destined,  however,  to  get  much  sleep.  About  half- 
past  three  I  was  awakened  by  a  shock  like  an  earth- 


From  Chichevatz  to  Krushevatz      85 

quake.  The  whole  building  rocked,  and  every  window 
fell  in  with  a  crash.  A  section  of  engineers  had  just 
blown  up  the  bridge  a  hundred  and  fifty  yards  away. 
This  was  followed  by  a  series  of  minor  explosions, 
while  the  red  flare  of  a  conflagration  filled  the  room. 
The  blowing  up  and  burning  of  the  hundreds  of  wag- 
ons had  begun.  An  engine  a  couple  of  yards  from  my 
now  glassless  windows  kept  whistling  unceasingly  for 
half  an  hour,  so  that  all  hope  of  further  sleep  was  at  an 
end. 

I  got  downstairs  in  the  cheerless  dawn  of  a  drizzling 
morning  to  find  the  inhabitants  of  the  village  having 
the  time  of  their  lives.  Three  hundred  loaded  trucks 
and  vans  had  been  given  over  to  plunder.  Some  of 
them  contained  thousands  of  boots,  two  were  filled 
with  several  million  packets  of  cigarette  papers,  others 
contained  biscuits,  tinned  meat  and  vegetables,  tea, 
coffee,  uniforms  and  stores  of  all  kinds.  One  wagon 
filled  with  perfumery  was  very  popular  with  the  female 
section  of  the  population,  peasant  women  who  probably 
had  never  owned  a  bottle  of  scent  in  their  lives. 

After  watching  this  orgy  of  looting  for  some  time, 
I  went  off  to  assist  the  station-master's  mother  in  pre- 
paring the  morning  coffee.  I  also  ransacked  our  pro- 
vision chest  and  gave  madame  le  chef  de  gave  some  tins 
of  preserved  food  for  use  on  their  long  tramp  to 
Pristina,  as  some  slight  return  for  the  kindly  hospital- 
ity she  and  her  husband  had  shown  us.  While  we 
were  breakfasting  we  had  a  visit  of  a  German  aero- 
plane. I  expected  it  would  drop  a  bomb  or  two  on  the 
station  and  was  somewhat  nervous  for  our  carriage 


86         From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

and  horses,  but  it  turned  out  to  be  merely  scouting,  and 
went  off  without  any  hostile  action. 

After  breakfast  we  received  some  unwelcome  in- 
telligence. During  the  night  German  cavalry  sent  to 
maintain  the  liaison  between  General  von  Gallwitz's 
Army,  operating  against  the  First  Serbian  Army  at 
Kraljevo,  twenty-eight  miles  to  the  west,  and  Field- 
Marshal  von  Mackensen's  force  had  arrived  at  Var- 
varin,  a  village  only  two  miles  distant.  As  all  that 
separated  us  from  Varvarin  was  open  pasture  land,  we 
might  receive  the  visit  of  a  patrol  at  any  moment.  We 
therefore  decided  that  we  would  leave  at  once.  But 
our  coachman  could  nowhere  be  found.  With  the  rest 
of  the  village  he  had  gone  off  plundering.  It  was  an 
hour  before  he  turned  up,  loaded  with  boots,  tinned 
provisions,  hundreds  of  packets  of  cigarette  papers, 
tins  of  petroleum  and  bottles  of  perfume.  Meanwhile 
du  Bochet  and  I  had  been  on  tenterhooks,  never  taking 
our  glasses  off  Varvarin  for  a  single  instant,  and  ex- 
pecting every  minute  to  see  the  lances  of  the  German 
cavalry  en  route  for  Chichevatz. 

As  soon  as  our  man  appeared  we  lost  no  time  in 
harnessing  the  horses  and  getting  the  carriage  under 
way.  In  order  to  lighten  the  task  of  our  wretched 
Rosinantes  we  decided  to  cover  the  twenty  kilometres 
separating  us  from  Krushevatz  on  foot.  The  drizzling 
rain  had  now  been  succeeded  by  brilliant  sunshine  so 
that  the  promenade  was  an  agreeable  one.  We  did  not 
hurry,  so  that  it  was  four  o'clock  before  we  arrived  at 
Krushevatz. 

There  we  noticed  an  unaccustomed  animation.    The 


From  Chichevatz  to  Krushevatz      87 

whole  town,  men,  women  and  children,  was  afoot  and 
everybody  seemed  in  the  best  of  spirits.  People  were 
standing  around  in  groups,  with  flushed  faces,  eagerly 
discussing.  We  soon  found  the  explanation  of  the 
mystery.  As  in  Chichevatz,  the  wagons  in  the  railway 
siding  had  been  given  over  to  plunder.  Among  their 
contents  was  a  consignment  of  several  thousand  bottles 
of  champagne.  These  the  villagers  had  promptly  ab- 
sorbed, with  the  result  that  the  whole  population  was 
in  a  highly  exhilarated  condition.  At  one  moment 
there  were  even  some  exciting  scenes.  Among  the  loot 
were  hundreds  of  rifles  and  thousands  of  cartridges, 
and  those  who  were  lucky  enough  to  obtain  these  began 
firing  them  off  in  all  directions  in  sheer  lightness  of 
heart,  due  to  their  indulgence  in  the  produce  of  Rheims 
and  Epernay.  It  is  a  miracle  that  there  were  no  casual- 
ties. 

In  the  main  street  we  met  a  number  of  nurses  of 
•  the  Scottish  Women's  Red  Cross  Unit.  They  in- 
formed us  that  Dr.  Elsie  Inglis,  the  head  of  the  Unit, 
had  decided  to  remain  with  the  wounded  and  had 
called  for  fifteen  volunteers  from  the  forty-five  nurses 
composing  the  Unit.  They  were  somewhat  nervous  as 
to  how  the  Germans  might  behave  on  entering  Krushe- 
vatz. I  was  in  a  position  to  inform  them  that,  as  far  as 
I  had  been  able  to  learn,  the  Kaiser's  troops  had  been 
on  their  good  behaviour  in  Serbia,  and  had  treated  the 
Serbian  wounded  fairly  well.  This  was  probably 
policy  on  their  part,  as  they  were  anxious  to  conciliate 
the  population  and  thus  facilitate  the  occupation  of  the 
country. 


88         From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

I  had  even  heard  reports  that  they  had  bound  up 
the  wounds  of  slightly  injured  Serbian  soldiers  and 
sent  them  back  to  their  own  lines  in  order  to  spread 
the  news  of  how  humane  they  were.  They  further 
sold  salt  to  the  peasants  for  a  few  centimes  the  pound 
(the  sale  of  salt  in  Serbia  is  a  Government  monopoly 
and  brings  in  a  large  revenue,  which  makes  it  an  ex- 
pensive commodity),  and  provided  sugar  at  one  fifth 
of  the  ordinary  price.  All  this,  of  course,  was  in- 
tended, so  to  speak,  as  a  bribe  to  the  population  and  to 
make  them  think  that  the  Germans  were  not  as  black 
as  their  reputation. 

I  have  since  met  Dr.  Elsie  Inglis  in  London,  after 
her  release  by  the  Germans,  and  found  that  she  had 
had  no  reason  to  regret  standing  by  her  wounded. 
Though  the  Germans  handled  her  and  her  nurses  with 
a  certain  amount  of  unnecessary  brusquerie  and  harsh- 
ness, they  were  not  actually  ill-treated,  and  had  the  sat- 
isfaction of  knowing  that  their  devotion  to  duty  had 
not  been  in  vain. 

The  initial  good  treatment  of  the  Serbian  popula- 
tion by  their  conquerors  disappeared  when  they  thought 
the  necessity  for  it  had  passed  away.  Once  they  were 
thoroughly  masters  of  the  Balkan  Peninsula  they  made 
a  "clean  sweep"  of  everything.  Sheep,  pigs,  cattle, 
grain,  metals,  firewood,  etc.,  everything,  in  a  word, 
which  could  be  the  slightest  use  to  the  German  popula- 
tion, was  sent  off  to  the  Fatherland  and  the  Serbian 
population  left  to  starve. 

But  this  is  a  digression.  Rcvcnons  a  nos  moiitons. 
As  it  was  certain  that  twenty-four  hours  was  the  long- 


From  Chichevatz  to  Krushevatz      89 

est  period  we  could  hope  to  remain  safely  in  Krushe- 
vatz, we  set  about  preparations  for  our  further  jour- 
ney. As  it  had  become  clear  that  the  pulling  of  our 
carriage  in  difficult  ground  was  beyond  the  strength  of 
our  two  horses,  we  decided  to  add  a  third.  We  there- 
fore purchased  the  blind  animal  we  had  originally  re- 
jected. He  was  the  strongest  of  the  three,  and  when 
placed  between  the  two  others  his  want  of  vision  was 
to  a  great  extent  neutralized. 

When  I  went  for  a  walk  in  the  town  next  morning 
I  found  it  a  great  contrast  to  what  it  had  been  the 
week  before.  The  crowds  of  refugees  which  had  filled 
it  to  excess  were  gone,  again  fleeing  before  the  invader. 
With  them  had  gone  a  goodly  proportion  of  the  regu- 
lar inhabitants.  Half  the  shops  and  all  the  hotels 
were  closed  and  the  streets  were  almost  deserted.  Such 
animation  as  there  was  came  from  the  military  ele- 
ment. An  endless  stream  of  troops  and  wagons  was 
pouring  through  the  town  and  making  for  the  blue 
line  of  mountains  behind  which  lay  the  Sandjak  of 
Novi  Bazaar. 

An  officer  I  met  told  me  some  touching  stories  of 
King  Peter.  The  aged  monarch,  in  spite  of  his  failing 
health,  deemed  it  his  duty  to  pass  his  days  in  the  midst 
of  his  faithful  troops.  He  was  always  to  be  found  at 
the  point  of  danger  and  inspired  his  soldiers  by  the 
calm  courage  he  showed  on  the  field  of  battle.  He  had 
accompanied  the  Second  and  Third  Armies  nearly  to 
Chupria  and  had  been  almost  constantly  under  shell- 
fire.  He  travelled  up  to  the  fighting-line  in  his  auto- 
mobile, but  once  he  had  reached  it  he  mounted  on 


90         From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

horseback  to  enter  the  fire  zone.  He  was  everywhere 
received  with  boundless  enthusiasm.  The  Karageorge- 
vitchs  have  always  been  a  fighting  race,  and  King  Peter 
is  true  to  the  blood  of  his  ancestors. 

The  same  officer,  who  belonged  to  the  Headquarters 
Staff,  gave  me  a  technical  resume  of  the  operations  of 
the  Serbian  Armies,  the  First  opposing  General  von 
Gallwitz  in  the  neighbourhood  of  Kraguyevatz,  and 
the  Second  and  Third  trying  to  bar  the  route  of  the 
army  of  Field-Marshal  von  Mackensen  in  its  descent 
through  the  valley  of  the  Morava. 

The  splitting  of  the  German  army  of  invasion  into 
two  was  due  to  the  obstinacy  of  the  Serbian  defence 
in  the  valley  of  the  Morava.  Field-Marshal  von 
Mackensen  saw  that  he  could  not  break  the  Serbian  re- 
sistance by  a  frontal  attack  on  their  positions.  He 
therefore  brought  up  two  new  divisions  to  reinforce 
the  troops  under  the  command  of  his  lieutenant,  Gen- 
eral von  Gallwitz,  and  sent  this  force  to  threaten  the 
Serbian  left  flank. 

This  forced  Field-Marshal  Putnik  to  send  to  the 
threatened  point  troops  taken  from  the  force  holding 
the  valley  of  the  Morava,  and  from  the  force  opposing 
on  the  east  the  advance  of  the  Bulgarians.  The  equili- 
brium was  henceforth  broken.  The  Bulgarian  divi- 
sion attacking  the  line  Zaetchar-Parachin  recovered  its 
liberty  of  movement,  finding  no  one  to  oppose  it,  and 
was  sent  to  reinforce  the  army  which  had  occupied  the 
line  Kniazhevatz-Saint  Nicholas  (lost  to  the  Serbians 
by  the  fault  of  the  Allies)  and  whose  mission  it  was  to 
capture   Nish.      With   the    reinforcements    from    the 


From  Chichevatz  to  Krushevatz      91 

Zaetchar-Parachin  line  the  Bulgarians  marching  on 
Nish  were  in  a  superiority  of  three  to  one. 

The  apex  of  the  angle  formed  by  the  junction  of  the 
two  fronts  was  mined,  and  the  Serbs  to  re-establish 
their  position  had  to  give  ground  along  the  whole 
front.  This  operation  constituted  a  very  delicate  prob- 
lem on  account  of  the  extreme  length  of  the  front,  the 
difficulty  of  maintaining  the  liaison  of  troops  so  scat- 
tered, the  insufficiency  of  the  means  of  communication, 
and  especially  the  constant  menace  that  the  two  flanks 
might  be  turned  by  an  enemy  so  superior  in  number. 

The  intervention  of  the  two  fresh  German  divisions 
sufficed  to  precipitate  the  march  of  events.  This  re- 
sumed the  whole  tactics  of  Field-Marshal  von  Macken- 
sen.  He  allowed  the  Serbians  to  organize  their  defen- 
sive, then  after  taking  his  time  to  thoroughly  recon- 
noitre their  positions,  he  brought  up  his  reserves  and, 
directing  a  crushing  attack  on  a  selected  point,  forced 
the  whole  army  to  fall  back  to  a  new  alignment  in  order 
to  prevent  being  cut  in  two. 

There  is  nothing  new  about  such  tactics,  but  Field- 
Marshal  von  Mackensen  applied  them  with  marvellous 
decision  and  a  propos,  calculating  everything,  foresee- 
ing everything  and  leaving  nothing  to  chance.  His 
immense  numerical  superiority  and  especially  his  supye- 
riority  in  guns  of  heavy  calibre  enabled  him  to  strike 
with  sledge-hammer  force  on  the  thin,  long-drawn-out 
line  of  battle,  which  to  defeat  the  constant  menace  of  a 
flanking  movement  the  Serbs  were  forced  to  maintain. 
The  German  Army,  in  a  word,  blasted  its  way  from 
the  Danube  to  the  line  Krushevatz-Kraljevo  by  means 


92         From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

of  shell  and  shrapnel.    Its  masses  of  infantry  and  cav- 
alry were  always  a  menace,  but  rarely  engaged. 

And  now  they  had  brought  the  Serbian  Army  with 
its  back  to  the  mountains  and  with  nO'  choice  but  to  re- 
treat, the  First  Army  through  the  pass  from  Kraljevo 
to  Mitrovitza  via  Rashka,  and  the  Second  and  Third 
Armies  through  the  70-kilometre  long  mountain  gorge 
running  from  Krushevatz  to  Kurshoumlia. 


CHAPTER  VI 

THE  RETREAT  THROUGH  THE  MOUNTAINS 

AS  the  day  passed  it  was  clear  that  the  nervousness 
of  the  inhabitants  was  increasing.  Though  those 
who  remained  had  voluntarily  made  up  their  minds  to 
await  the  arrival  of  the  Germans,  it  was  evident  that  as 
that  moment  approached  they  were  becoming  anxious 
as  to  what  their  treatment  might  be  at  the  hands  of  the 
enemy.  Shortly  after  midday  the  public  crier  went 
round  summoning  the  oldest  male  inhabitants  to  the 
Town  Hall.  Everybody  knew  what  this  meant.  These 
old  men  were  to  form  the  deputation  which  would  pro- 
ceed, bearing  a  white  flag,  along  the  high  road  toward 
Stalatch  to  announce  to  the  Germans  the  surrender  of 
the  town.  The  downcast  looks  of  the  people  in  the 
streets  showed  how  deeply  they  felt  their  position  and 
what  an  effort  it  cost  them  to  allow  the  enemy  within 
their  gates. 

About  three  o'clock  I  heard  that  isolated  patrols  of 
cavalry  preceding  the  German  advance-guard  had  been 
seen  between  Krushevatz  and  Stalatch.  It  was  clear 
that  our  departure  could  no  longer  be  delayed.  I  paid 
a  last  visit  to  the  hospital  to  take  farewell  of  the  brave 
women  of  the  Scottish  Red  Cross  who  were  stopping 
with  their  wounded.     I  gave  them  all  T  could  spare  in 

93 


94         From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

the  way  of  preserves,  as  I  had  heard  they  had  been  re- 
duced to  dry  bread  for  a  fortnight  past,  and  I  knew 
that  the  resources  of  Krushevatz  were  completely  ex- 
hausted. They  told  me  Mr.  Smith,  the  secretary  of  the 
Unit,  and  thirty  of  the  nurses  had  left  that  morning  in 
two  bullock  carts  making  for  Cettinje,  the  capital  of 
Montenegro,  via  Mitrovitza,  Ipek  and  Andreyevitza. 

At  five  o'clock  I  had  the  horses  harnessed  and  we 
left  the  town.  We  did  not,  however,  make  rapid 
progress,  as  a  couple  of  miles  further  on  we  reached 
the  road  along  which  the  army  was  marching.  The 
passage  of  thousands  of  wagons  and  hundreds  of  guns 
had  given  the  coup  de  grace  to  the  wretched  road,  at 
no  time  in  the  best  of  repair.  It  had  been  churned  by 
innumerable  wheels  and  hoofs  into  a  veritable  quag- 
mire. Every  instant  a  wagon  would  stick  fast  and 
block  the  line  for  a  mile.  Our  three  horses,  panting 
and  covered  with  sweat,  were  straining  at  the  traces 
and  every  now  and  then  came  to  a  complete  standstill. 
To  lighten  their  task,  du  Bochet  and  I  got  out  and 
walked  alongside. 

As  darkness  fell  the  scene  became  a  sinister  one.  To 
the  left  behind  the  railway  station,  one  building  after 
another  burst  into  flame ;  the  employes  were  firing  the 
storehouses  and  blowing  up  the  wagons  on  the  siding. 
A  few  minutes  later  the  whole  town  was  shaken  by  a 
series  of  explosions.  The  stocks  accumulated  in  the 
Obilitchevo  powder  magazine  were  being  blown  up. 

From  the  eminence  on  which  I  stood  the  spectacle 
was  terrifying.  Krushevatz  was  blazing  at  half  a 
dozen  points,  the  whole  sky  was  covered  with  a  crim- 


Retreat  Through  the  Mountains     95 

son  glare,  while  below  us  the  river,  blood-red  in  the 
flames,  could  be  followed  to  the  horizon,  where  the 
flashes  of  Serbian  guns  delaying  the  German  advance 
could  be  seen. 

On  the  line  of  retreat  confusion  became  worse  con- 
founded. The  whole  road  was  filled  with  a  triple  line 
of  bullock  wagons,  their  panting  teams  straining  to 
tear  them  through  the  tenacious  mud.  Suddenly  there 
came  an  explosion  like  an  earthquake.  An  immense 
column  of  yellow  flame  shot  heavenward,  lighting  up 
the  whole  country  for  miles  round.  The  heavy  girder 
bridge  over  the  river  had  been  dynamited.  At  the 
same  instant  three  immense  German  shells  came 
screaming  overhead  and  burst  with  tremendous  explo- 
sions, one  near  the  Town  Hall  and  two  near  the  rail- 
way station.  These  nerve-shaking  explosions  caused 
a  wild  panic  among  the  oxen,  the  first  I  had  seen  in 
Serbia.  The  terrified  animals  broke  into  a  lumbering 
gallop  and  poured  in  a  surging  mass,  with  our  carriage 
in  their  midst,  down  the  road.  Suddenly  they  came  on 
a  narrow  bridge  spanning  a  small  ravine.  Those  on 
the  outside  were  forced  against  the  parapet.  I  saw 
the  carriage  balance  for  an  instant  and  then,  with  the 
three  horses,  crash  into  the  ditch  twenty  feet  below. 
There  was  a  sound  of  smashing  glass,  and  it  was  all 
over  with  our  vehicle. 

The  only  thing  was  to  extricate  the  kicking  horses 
and  salve  such  baggage  as  had  escaped  the  disaster. 
This  was  a  long  and  difficult  process,  as  it  was  as  dark 
as  pitch  and  rain  was  now  falling  in  torrents,  but  after 
an  hour  and  a  half  of  hard  work  we  finally  got  our  be- 


g6         From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

longings  ranged  alongside  the  roadside.  Fortunately 
the  ravine  into  which  our  carriage  had  fallen  was 
overgrown  with  thick  brushwood.  This  had  broken 
the  fall  of  our  horses  so  that,  apart  from  some  slight 
damage  they  had  done  to  each  other  with  their  hoofs, 
they  were  not  much  the  worse.  We  replaced  the 
harness  by  the  saddles  and  bridles  as  the  easiest  way  of 
transporting  them  and  got  the  animals  safely  back  on 
the  road. 

Our  next  difficulty  was  tO'  find  means  of  transport 
for  our  baggage.  Our  coachman  stopped  a  mounted 
non-commissioned  officer  of  the  transport  service.  I 
do  not  know  exactly  what  he  said  tO'  him,  but  I  imagine 
he  made  him  believe  we  were  foreigners  of  distinction, 
persons  of  great  importance  whom  it  was  advisable  to 
befriend.  In  any  case,  he  consented  to  stop  the  next 
transport  wagon  that  should  have  room  for  our  bag- 
gage. 

A  few  minutes  later  the  Reserve  Munition  Column 
of  the  Timok  Division  (which  was  fighting  a  rear- 
guard action  to  cover  the  retreat)  came  up  and  room 
was  found  for  our  belongings.  Du  Bochet  and  I  en- 
tered a  second  wagon  after  tethering  Julius  and  Caesar 
to  it.  Our  coachman  remained  mounted  on  the  third 
horse.  This  was  the  last  we  ever  saw  of  him.  He  took 
advantage  of  the  darkness  to  go  off  with  the  horse  and 
saddle.  Unfortunately  for  him,  in  the  darkness  he 
had  taken  the  blind  animal.  Two  days  later  we  heard 
that  he  had  been  seen  trying  to  sell  it  for  150  dinars 
(about  $30),  but  I  do  not  know  if  he  found  a  pur- 
chaser. 


Retreat  Through  the  Mountains     97 

Krushevatz,  I  learned  from  a  cavalry  scout  riding 
by,  was  on  the  point  of  being  occupied  by  the  Germans. 
All  the  Serbian  troops  had  been  withdrawn  except 
a  few  bands  of  Comitadjis,  or  Serbian  irregulars,  who 
were  still  holding  the  bank  of  the  river.  The  three 
shells  we  had  seen  explode  were  the  only  ones  fired  by 
the  Germans,  and  were  evidently  intended  more  to 
strike  terror  than  to  do  actual  harm. 

Worse  news  was  brought  from  Stalatch,  the  last  sta- 
tion before  Krushevatz.  The  evening  before  a  railway 
train  of  seventy  wagons  had  been  put  together  and  sent 
off.  On  reaching  a  gradient  the  single  engine  proved 
too  weak  to  mount  it  with  such  a  train  behind  it.  There 
was  nothing  for  it  but  to  uncouple  half  the  wagons  and 
leave  them  behind.  Unfortunately  no  one  sent  word 
of  this'to  Stalatch.  The  result  was  that  when  the  last 
train  left  that  station  with  the  employes  and  the  mili- 
tary guard  on  board  in  the  darkness  it  crashed  into  the 
standing  wagons  and  wrecked  the  whole  train.  Forty 
people  we're  killed  and  nearly  a  hundred  seriously  in- 
jured. 

This  news  was  not  encouraging,  but  we  could  at 
least  congratulate  ourselves  that  we  had  been  able  to 
find  transport  for  ourselves  and  baggage.  The  wagon 
we  occupied  was  far  from  being  an  ideal  means  of 
locomotion.  Its  tilt  was  not  exactly  watertight,  and 
ammunition  boxes,  when  they  are  thrown  anyhow  into 
a  wagon,  do  not  form  a  model  sleeping  couch.  But  we 
consoled  ourselves  by  remembering  that  it  was  as- 
suredly superior  to  any  accommodation  we  would  have 
had  as  Gernian  prisoners,  which  might  easily  have  been 


98         From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

our  fate.  We  journeyed  slowly  onwards  till  about 
midnight,  when  the  park  was  formed  and  a  halt  was 
made  for  the  night. 

At  dawn  we  were  again  en  route.  As  the  rain  had 
ceased  we  were  able  to  get  out  and  walk.  The  pano- 
rama which  met  our  eyes  was  grandiose  in  the  extreme. 
To  right  and  left  of  us  snow-capped  mountains  towered 
to  the  clouds.  Through  the  centre  of  the  valley  they 
formed  wound  a  narrow  road  skirting  a  rushing 
stream,  the  Rasina.  As  far  as  the  eye  could  reach,  both 
in  front  and  rear,  was  an  endless  line  of  marching  regi- 
ments, infantry,  cavalry  and  artillery,  and  thousands 
upon  thousands  of  white  or  yellow  tilted  bullock  wag- 
ons. For  fifty  kilometres  in  front  of  us  and  ten  behind 
us  rolled  this  human  flood,  130,000  men,  20,000  horses 
and  80,000  oxen,  with  here  and  there  a  pontoon  train, 
a  field  telegraph  section  or  a  battery  of  immense  howit- 
zers drawn  by  teams  of  twenty-four  oxen. 

But  behind  us  we  could  always  hear  the  inexorable 
thunder  of  the  German  guns.  At  first  I  wondered 
that  the  army  did  not  make  a  stand,  as  if  ever  there 
was  a  position  which  seemed  capable  of  defence  it  was 
the  valley  of  the  Rasina.  About  four  o'clock  in  the 
afternoon  we  reached  a  point  which  seemed  a  veritable 
Thermopylae.  This  was  the  point  where  the  Toplitza 
flows  into  the  Rasina.  Towering  mountains  rose  on 
either  hand,  while  in  the  centre,  facing  up  the  valley, 
was  an  isolated  hill,  to  left  and  right  of  which  were 
flowing  the  two  streams.  It  was  the  most  unique  pKDsi- 
tion  of  natural  strength  that  I  had  ever  seen. 

But  I  soon  found  the  explanation  of  why  we  were 


Retreat  Through  the  Mountains     99 

pressing  on  without  losing  an  instant.  Field-Marshal 
von  Mackensen  had  sent  orders  to  the  Bulgarian  force 
at  Nish  to  advance  on  Kurshoumlia,  zna  Prokuplje,  and 
close  the  exit  to  the  pass.  If  this  manoeuvre  had  been 
successful  the  whole  of  the  Second  and  Third  Armies 
would  have  been  caught  in  the  mountain  gorge  with 
the  entrance  held  by  the  Germans  and  the  exit  closed 
by  the  Bulgarians.  All  that  the  Serbians  had  to  hold 
back  the  whole  Bulgarian  Army  advancing  on  Kursh- 
oumlia from  Nish  was  a  division  and  a  half.  If  this 
force  should  fail  to  check  the  Bulgarians  our  fate  was 
sealed. 

It  wa^  therefore  no  matter  for  surprise  that  the 
Serbians  strained  every  nerve  to  get  clear  of  the  pass, 
or  that  they  were  unable  to  halt  for  a  single  hour  to 
hold  back  the  pursuing  Germans.  Such  rearguard  ac- 
tions as  were  fought  were  only  such  as  were  absolutely 
necessary  to  protect  the  march  of  the  retreating 
column. 

As  the  Serbian  oxen  cannot  be  driven  much  beyond 
their  ordinar}'^  pace,  on  such  occasions  increased  speed 
must  be  replaced  by  prolongation  of  the  effort.  On  the 
second  day  of  our  march  through  the  pass  we  were  on 
the  move,  without  even  stopping  to  feed  or  water  the 
oxen,  from  six  o'clock  one  morning  till  two  o'clock 
the  next,  or  an  etape  of  twenty-one  hours.  Then,  after 
a  stop  of  only  four  hours  to  feed  and  rest  the  exhausted 
animals,  the  march  was  resumed.  From  time  to  time 
a  German  aeroplane  hovered  over  the  column,  but. 
curiously  enough,  made  no  attempt  to  throw  lx)mbs, 


100       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

though  the  slow-moving  column  offered  an  excellent 
target. 

The  next  day  we  had  to  separate  ourselves  from  our 
wagons,  as  a  fresh  arrival  of  ammunition  filled  them 
and  left  no  room  for  our  baggage  or  ourselves.  As  we 
had  now  conquered  a  position  as  sort  of  "honorary 
Komordjis"  of  the  Timok  division,  the  major  in  com- 
mand of  the  convoy  found  us  another  wagon.  This 
was  in  the  Provision  Column  of  the  division  and  was 
fortunately  nearly  empty,  so  that  we  were  able  to^  stow 
our  baggage  and  ourselves  in  comparative  comfort. 
The  wagon  was  well  and  solidly  built,  with  a  fine 
brand-new  yellow  canvas  tilt.  This  was  made  from 
an  English  tent  which  the  driver  had  obtained  just  be- 
fore the  destruction  of  the  contents  of  Kraguyevatz 
arsenal. 

The  driver,  a  man  named  Stanco,  was  destined  to 
accompany  us  right  to  the  end  of  our  Odyssey.  He 
was  a  peasant  from  the  Timok  province,  and  the 
wagon  and  oxen  under  his  charge  were  the  property  of 
his  sister-in-law,  the  widow  of  his  brother  who  had 
fallen  a  victim  to  the  great  typhus  epidemic  some 
months  before.  For  three  long  years  Stanco  had 
tramped  alongside  his  team.  He  had  been  at  the  siege 
of  Adrianople  in  the  war  against  Turkey,  had  gone 
through  the  campaign  against  Bulgaria,  and  been 
present  at  the  rout  of  the  Austrian  Army  under  Field- 
Marshal  von  Potiorek. 

Strange  to  say,  Stanco  could  speak  a  little  French, 
having  been  employed  in  a  copper  mine  in  his  native 
province    run    by    a    French    company.      Like    most 


Retreat  Through  the  Mountains   lOi 

*'Komordji,"  he  was  a  past-master  of  camp  cookery 
and  could  turn  out  a  savoury  meal  with  the  most  primi- 
tive materials.  He  was  also,  like  many  men  from 
Timok,  an  excellent  performer  on  a  curious  native 
flute,  made  out  of  a  stem  of  the  maize  plant.  I  used 
often  to  hear  him  in  the  middle  of  the  night  playing  the 
strangely  sad  and  plaintive  folk-song  of  his  people. 
He  seemed  to  find  consolation  in  this  for  his  separation 
from  his  wife  and  three  little  children,  who  were  try- 
ing to  run  his  small  homestead  in  Timok.  Our  chief 
difficulty  now  was  to  find  bread.  Flour  was  running 
short  and  the  price  of  the  loaf  had  gone  up  from  two- 
pence to  two  francs.  Other  provisions  were  still, 
however,  relatively  cheap,  as  a  fowl  for  instance  could 
still  be  had  for  seventy-five  centimes,  or  at  most  a 
dinar  or  franc. 

The  gorge  through  which  we  passed  the  last  day 
of  our  march  was  one  of  savage  grandeur  and  had  a 
singular  resemblance  to  a  mountain  gorge  in  the  Scot- 
tish highlands,  bare,  brown-coloured  mountains,  topped 
with  snow  and  covered  half-way  up  with  stunted  trees, 
towering  on  either  hand.  But  we  had  little  inclination 
to  admire  scenery.  Since  midday  we  began  to  hear 
sounds  of  heavy  firing  in  front  of  us,  which  showed 
that  the  Bulgarian  Army  was  forcing  its  way  toward 
Kurshoumlia,  and  might  even  yet  close  the  exit  of  the 
pass. 

Even  the  oxen  seemed  to  be  affected  by  the  pre- 
vailing anxiety,  and  stepped  out  with  more  than  their 
usual  vigour.  The  men  of  our  column  rarely  spoke. 
They  seemed  depressed  and  exhausted  with  their  long 


102       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

march,  and  hardly  even  raised  their  heads  to  watch  the 
German  aeroplanes  which  from  time  to  time  circled 
overhead.  They  were  for  the  most  part  men  from 
Timok,  with  the  dark,  swarthy  complexion,  brilliant 
eyes,  and  heavy  sheepskin  caps  like  inverted  beehives 
on  their  heads. 

They  had  tramped  alongside  their  oxen  from  the 
Hungarian  frontier  to  the  gates  of  Constantinople, 
from  the  plains  of  Thrace  to  the  mountains  of  Al- 
bania. They  had  become  indifferent  to  everything,  liv- 
ing as  in  a  painful  dream,  having  in  their  hearts  neither 
hope  nor  hatred,  but  only  a  sort  of  indescribable  re- 
gret, mixed  at  times  with  a  childish  astonishment,  at 
the  accumulated  horrors  of  the  war.  We  had  met  them 
by  the  hazard  of  our  route,  we  would  soon  leave  them 
never  to  see  them  again,  and  yet  I  had  the  conviction 
that  if  need  be  they  would  have  fought  for  us  and  died 
for  us,  just  because  we  showed  them  kindness.  Their 
lives  day  after  day  were  of  unchanging  monotony. 
While  daylight  lasted,  they  tramped  stolidly  alongside 
their  teams.  At  night  we  stopped  wherever  opportu- 
nity offered.  The  major  in  command  gave  an  order, 
and  immediately  men  and  beasts  formed  the  "park." 
This  was  done  automatically,  always  with  the  same 
gestures.  In  ten  minutes,  or  half  an  hour  at  the  most, 
the  wagons  had  lined  up,  the  oxen  were  picketed.  In 
the  narrow  space  between  the  lines  of  wagons  the  fires 
were  lighted. 

Squatting  down  on  their  heels,  the  men  stretched 
their  numbed  hands  to  the  flickering  blaze.  Some- 
times one  would  hear  the  plaintive  strains  from  the 


Retreat  Through  the  Mountains   103 

violin  of  a  gipsy  soldier,  or  the  low  sounds  of  the 
native  flute.  The  men  seemed  in  these  sombre  days  to 
sleep  but  little.  After  tramping  all  day  alongside  their 
wagons  they  would  remain  seated  around  the  bivouac 
fires,  dozing  or  talking  in  low  tones,  till  the  advent  of 
the  cheerless  dawn  warned  them  to  feed  the  oxen  and 
prepare  to  resume  their  weary  march.  Nothing  seemed 
to  interest  them,  nothing  to  excite  them.  They  seemed 
deaf  to  the  ceaseless  thunder  of  the  guns  in  our  rear 
and  front,  though  they  must  have  realized  that  if  the 
Bulgarians  should  drive  back  the  weak  Serbian  force 
holding  them  in  check,  they  would  fall  captive  to  a  piti- 
less enemy.  I  do  not  believe  that  they  were  really  in- 
different to  the  prospect,  but  with  their  curious  fatalism 
they  were  prepared  to  accept  the  inevitable.  This, 
however,  did  not  for  a  moment  make  them  relax  their 
constant  effort  to  push  forward  without  losing  a  mo- 
ment. 

It  was  with  relief  that  we  saw  the  mountain  gorge 
gradually  broadening,  a  sign  that  we  were  approaching 
Kurshoumlia.  About  four  o'clock  in  the  afternoon 
we  at  last  came  in  sight  of  that  village,  a  small  group 
of  houses,  the  centre  of  an  amphitheatre  of  hills.  But 
if  it  was  insignificant  as  regards  size  and  economic  im- 
portance, its  strategic  importance  was  immense.  To 
the  rear  ran  the  route  to  Krushevatz,  along  which  the 
Germans  were  marching  in  our  pursuit.  To  the  left 
was  the  route  to  Nish,  zna  Prokuplje,  by  which  the 
Bulgarians  had  been  advancing  in  their  attempt  to 
reach  Kurshoumlia  and  close  the  exit  of  the  pass,  while 
on  the  right  was  a  road  leading  to  the  route  from 


104       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

Kraljevo  to  Mitrovitza,  the  route  along  which  the  First 
Army  was  passing,  pursued  by  the  Austro-German 
forces  under  General  von  Gallwitz.  The  road  running 
from  Kurshoumlia  joined  this  route  at  Rashka,  where, 
a  week  before,  the  General  Headquarters  had  been  in- 
stalled on  leaving  Krushevatz. 

The  panorama  presented  by  Kurshoumlia  and  the 
environs  was  a  marvellous  one.  On  all  the  hills  were 
countless  wagons  and  the  bivouacs  of  the  troops.  Guns 
were  parked  in  long  lines  and  thousands  of  horses  were 
either  picketed  or  turned  loose  to  crop  the  short  herb- 
age. From  the  further  extremity,  on  the  road  leading 
to  Pristina,  our  only  line  of  retreat,  long  lines  of  wag- 
ons were  moving  off,  their  places  being  immediately 
occupied  by  the  column  debouching  from  the  pass. 

The  news  we  received  at  Kurshoumlia  was  not 
cheerful.  The  First  Army,  which  was  retreating  from 
Kraljevo  to  Mitrovitza,  was  being  hard  pressed  by  the 
Germans.  The  latter  were  reported  to  have  reached 
Rashka.  If  this  was  so,  our  position  was  critical  in 
the  extreme.  As  soon  as  the  last  Serbian  regiment  had 
left  the  pass  and  reached  Kurshoumlia,  we  might  ex- 
pect tO'  see  the  first  German  column  debouch  from  it. 
The  Bulgarians  who  had  marched  from  Nish  to  attack 
us  were  still  being  held  at  Prokuplje,  ten  miles  distant. 
But  the  most  serious  news  was  that  of  the  German  ad- 
vance to  Rashka,  because  if  they  should  reach  Mitro- 
vitza and  march  on  Pristina  our  retreat  would  be  com- 
pletely cut  off,  and  in  a  week's  time  we  would  be  the 
centre  of  a  circle  of  German  and  Bulgarian  bayonets. 

It  was  for  this  reason  that  the  whole  army  was  con- 


Retreat  Through  the  Mountains   105 

tinuing  its  retreat  on  Pristina,  to  join  hands  with  the 
First  Army  which  was  retreating  from  Kraljevo 
through  Rashka  and  Mitrovitza.  If  the  movement 
should  succeed  the  whole  of  the  Serbian  Army,  or 
rather,  what  was  left  of  it,  would  be  concentrated  at 
Pristina,  in  the  triangle  of  which  that  town  would  be 
the  apex,  and  the  base  a  line  drawn  from  Mitrovitza 
to  Prisrend.  As  the  population  of  this  territory  is  nine- 
tenths  xA.lbanian  and  the  people  were  conquered  by  the 
Serbs  less  than  four  years  before,  too  much  confidence 
could  not  be  placed  in  their  loyalty  to  King  Peter.  The 
position  of  the  Serbian  Army  was  therefore  becoming 
more  and  more  desperate  every  hour.  Desertions  were 
becoming  daily  more  numerous.  We  shot  three  de- 
serters in  the  camp  the  evening  after  our  arrival ;  but  I 
could  see  from  the  sullen  attitude  of  the  men  that  the 
carrying  out  of  the  sentence  was  straining  things  to 
breaking  strain. 

In  Serbia,  as  I  have  already  stated,  conscription  is 
regional;  the  men  in  a  battalion  all  come  from  the 
same  district  and  those  in  the  companies  generally 
from  the  same  village.  They  are  many  of  them  blood 
relations,  being  brothers,  cousins,  uncles  and  nephews, 
etc.  When  once  the  work  of  demoralization  begins,  it 
is  difficult  to  inflict  drastic  punishment.  The  three 
men  we  shot  were  deserters  from  other  regiments,  and 
the  men  of  the  Timok  division  regarded  their  fate  with 
more  indifference  than  they  would  have  shown  had 
they  been  from  their  part  of  the  country.  That  the 
fighting  in  the  pass  had  been  severe  in  the  last  twenty- 
four  hours  was  shown  by  the  fact  that  ten  wagons 


io6       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

came  in  filled  with  harness  of  the  horses  killed  in  the 
recent  engagements.  General  Yurishitch-Sturm  did 
not  dare  to  oppose  the  Germans  as  long  as  the  mass  of 
his  army  was  in  the  pass,  but  once  the  main  body  and 
the  transport  train  was  through  in  safety,  he  put  up  a 
better  rearguard  fight.  A  battery  of  howitzers  and 
two  batteries  of  field  artillery  which  came  in  the  night 
of  our  arrival  bore  signs  of  the  heavy  fighting  they  had 
been  engaged  in  during  the  preceding  forty-eight  hours. 

A  ceaseless  stream  of  troops  and  transport  was  pour- 
ing toward  Pristina.  They  only  remained  bivouacked 
in  Kurshoumlia  long  enough  to  give  the  exhausted  men 
and  animals  the  much  needed  rest  before  embarking  on 
the  75-kilometres  march  to  Pristina.  As  we  lay  on  the 
grass  on  the  side  of  the  mountains  where  the  transport 
column  was  bivouacked,  we  could  hear  the  triple  can- 
nonade from  the  Germans  on  the  north,  the  Bulgarians 
on  the  east  and  the  Austrians  on  the  west,  drawing 
nearer  hour  by  hour,  showing  that  the  claws  of  the  vise 
were  slowly  but  surely  closing  in  on  us.  A  number  of 
pessimists  regarded  our  capture  as  certain,  but  as  we 
could  do  nothing  till  the  exhausted  bullocks  were  fed 
and  rested,  we  could  only  posses  our  souls  in  patience 
with  such  philosophy  as  we  might. 

As  I  and  my  French  colleague  still  had  the  two 
horses  which  survived  the  disaster  to  our  carriage 
tethered  to  our  ox  wagon,  we  had  always  the  possibil- 
ity, on  the  condition  that  we  abandoned  all  our  other 
worldly  possessions,  of  being  able  to  keep  out  of  the 
actual  clutches  of  the  enemy  by  taking  to  the  moun- 
tains. 


CHAPTER  VII 

KURSHOUMLIA  TO   PRISTINA 

THE  exhausted  state  of  our  oxen  forced  us  to  pass 
three  anxious  days  at  KurshoumHa.  The  sec- 
ond day  the  dull  boom  of  guns  to  our  right  confirmed 
the  report  that  the  Germans  were  at  Rashka.  We  were 
therefore  nearly  completely  surrounded,  the  Germans 
being  to  the  north,  the  Austro-Germans  to  the  west 
and  the  Bulgarians  to  the  east.  The  only  line  of  re- 
treat was  to  the  south  toward  Pristina.  If  both  the 
armies  we  were  with  and  the  First  Army  marching  zia 
Mitrovitza  reached  there  in  safety,  the  entire  armed 
force  of  Serbia  would  be  concentrated  round  that 
town. 

Our  wagon  was  lying  on  the  steep  slope  of  a  wind- 
swept mountain.  Our  two  wretched  horses,  which  had 
suffered  greatly  from  the  scarcity  of  forage  on  the 
march  through  the  pass,  were  turned  loose  to  graze.  A 
hundred  yards  or  so  behind  us  on  the  crest  of  the  hill 
was  a  bare,  sun-parched  plateau  on  which  were  a  series 
of  half-ruined  trenches,  the  last  vestiges  of  the  war 
against  Turkey.  Here  the  artillery  had  established 
some  anti-air  guns  to  drive  off  any  of  the  enemy's  aero- 
planes which  might  be  tempted  to  bomb  the  closely- 
packed  wagon  park.    Behind  these  a  Serbian  aeroplane 

107 


io8       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

lay  under  the  guard  of  a  sentry.  It  was  ready,  at  the 
first  signal,  to  go  to  meet  the  attack  of  any  German 
airmen.  From  time  to  time  it  also  made  a  flight  to 
reconnoitre  the  position  of  the  army  of  Field-Marshal 
von  Mackensen.  The  troops  holding  the  Bulgarians 
in  check  at  Prokuplje  had  also  been  reinforced  by  the 
troops  which  had  safely  debouched  from  the  pass,  so 
that  we  could  breathe  more  freely.  The  chances  of  a 
successful  advance  by  the  Bulgarians  had  now  much 
diminished. 

In  the  afternoon  of  the  day  following  our  arrival, 
I  paid  a  visit  to  the  village  of  Kurshoumlia.  I  found 
it  crowded  to  excess.  The  streets  were  filled  with  an 
extraordinary  mass  of  wagons,  motor-cars,  guns,  pon- 
toon trains,  horses,  men  and  oxen.  A  military  wireless 
station  was  crackling  away  busily  sending  reports  and 
receiving  orders  from  the  Headquarters  Staff.  Long 
columns  were  still  pouring  from  the  pass  we  had 
quitted  the  day  before.  At  the  other  extremity  of  the 
village  other  columns,  which  had  been  reposing  for 
three  or  four  days,  were  pouring  out  in  the  direction 
ni  Pristina.  As  soon  as  they  evacuated  their  bivouacs 
their  places  were  at  once  taken  by  the  newcomers. 
The  wretched  oxen  of  the  arriving  columns  dragged 
themselves  along  witli  hanging  heads  in  the  last  stages 
of  physical  exhaustion.  Many  had  lost  their  shoes  in 
the  rocky  defiles  and  were  limping  badly.  Shoeing 
shops  had,  however,  been  installed  in  every  wagon 
park.  The  shoeless  beasts  were  thrown  on  their  backs, 
their  feet  roped  to  a  wooden  tripod,  and  in  a  few 


Kurshoumlia  to  Pristina         109 

minutes  the  thin  metal  plates  were  again  attached  to 
their  h(X)fs. 

We  found  that  the  money  crisis  which  had  long 
been  threatening  had  now  become  acute.  No  one  would 
accept  the  Serbian  ten  dinar  notes,  and  as  those  who 
still  possessed  silver  money  refused  to  part  with  it, 
things  were  rapidly  approaching  a  deadlock.  Nearly 
all  the  civil  population  had  left  and  the  staffs  of  the 
Second  and  Third  Armies  were  already  en  route  for 
Pristina.  All  that  remained  in  the  village  were  a  few 
subaltern  functionaries,  some  military  surgeons  and 
Red  Cross  sections  and  the  commanders  of  the  units 
left  to  cover  the  retreat  and  delay  the  advance  of  the 
enemy. 

The  National  Stanitza,  or  official  headquarters,  was 
besieged  by  a  crowd  of  wounded,  stragglers  and  sol- 
diers who  had  lost  touch  with  their  regiments.  They  all 
demanded  bread,  but  only  the  wounded  were  served. 
The  others  received  the  curt  and  apparently  harsh 
order,  "Eat  maize."  As  if  to  excuse  his  apparent 
harshness  the  commissary  turned  to  me  and  said  in  a 
low  voice,  'T  can't  tell  the  poor  devils  that  all  is  lost, 
that  there  is  no  hope  of  the  Allies  coming  to  our  assist- 
ance, and  that  we  have  only  flour  and  fodder  for  two 
more  weeks." 

In  the  streets  not  a  single  woman  was  to  be  seen. 
All  the  shops,  except  a  pharmacy,  a  hairdresser's,  and 
a  cafe  were  closed.  We  entered  the  latter.  Seated  on 
the  srround  were  a  hundred  or  so  soldiers  without 
arms,  their  uniforms  in  rags  and  covered  with  dust, 
many  of  them  wounded,  and  all  in  the  last  stage  of 


no       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

physical  exhaustion.  They  were  drinking-  raki,  the 
national  spirit  of  Serbia.  The  terrible  state  of  the 
atmosphere  soon  drove  us  out,  we  preferred  the 
monotonous  solitude  of  our  bivouac. 

As  night  fell  the  spectacle  was  a  wonderful  one.  On 
all  the  amphitheatre  of  hills  thousands  of  camp-fires 
were  burning.  In  our  bivouac  we  passed  what  seemed 
interminable  hours.  The  cold  was  intense  and  wood 
was  none  too  plentiful.  Seated  round  the  fires  the 
"Komordjis,"  or  wagon  drivers,  turned  and  re-turned 
before  the  flames  the  long  linen  rags  in  which  they 
envelop  their  feet  before  putting  on  the  heavy  leather 
moccasins  with  upward  pointed  toes  which  constitute 
their  footwear.  At  night  the  faithful  Stanco  made  a 
bed  for  us  under  the  tilt  of  the  wagon  with  boxes  of 
shells  for  a  mattress  and  cases  of  Russian  rifle  car- 
tridges for  a  pillow. 

But  the  enemy  was  advancing  continually,  and  we 
had  again  to  get  en  route,  join  once  more  the  endless 
columns  marching  from  morning  to  night  in  the  mud 
and  rain.  It  was  blowing  half  a  gale  which  drove  the 
rain  in  sheets  before  it  in  sudden  squalls. 

The  whole  Serbian  Army,  with  the  exception  of  the 
few  divisions  required  to  fight  the  rearguard  actions 
necessary  to  delay  the  advance  of  the  German  and 
Bulgarian  Armies,  was  now  again  in  retreat.  It  was 
clear  that  a  certain  amount  of  indecision  prevailed  as 
to  the  future  operations.  The  probability  of  the  re- 
treat ending  in  a  disaster  was  becoming  more  obvious 
day  by  day.  The  embarrassments  of  the  Government 
had  reached  such  a  point  that  the  civil  and  military  ad- 


Kurshoumlia  to  Pristina         iii 

ministrations  threatened  to  collapse  beneath  the  strain. 
In  fact,  the  civil  administration  had  already  done  so. 
The  whole  of  the  population  of  northern  and  southern 
Serbia  was  now  pouring  into  the  former  Sandjak  of 
Novi  Bazaar  and  the  Albanian  province  lying  between 
Pristina  and  Prisrend.  Ninety  per  cent,  of  these  peo- 
ple had  no  money  and  no  food,  and  even  if  they  had 
had  money,  unless  it  was  in  silver,  it  would  have  been 
no  good  to  them,  as  the  peasants  and  villagers  refused 
to  accept  paper  in  any  form. 

As  a  consequence,  the  Government  had  to  rescind 
its  order  that  all  the  male  population  above  fourteen 
years  of  age  should  retreat  before  the  Germans.  The 
problem  of  feeding  these  hundreds  of  thousands  of 
fugitives  had  proved  an  unsolvable  one,  and  they  were 
now  ordered  tO'  return  to  their  homes.  But  it  was  one 
thing  to  give  an  order  and  another  tO'  carry  it  out. 
The  tide  of  human  misery  which  had  been  flowing  to 
the  Sandjak  and  towards  Albania  had  now  turned 
back,  and  was  flowing  northward.  But  as  they  had 
already  swept  the  country  clean  of  every  kind  of  pro- 
visions on  their  southward  march,  they  entered  a  desert 
when  they  started  to  re-traverse  it  on  the  homeward 
journey.  Ever)^  minute  or  two  I  met  groups  of  gaunt, 
hollow-eyed  men  and  women,  dragging  themselves 
wearily  back  along  the  roads  they  had  had  so  much 
difficulty  in  passing  a  few  days  before.  One  often 
came  on  a  dead  body  or  on  some  poor  wretch  who  had 
Iain  down  to  die. 

The  valley  from  Kurshoumlia  along  the  banks  of 
the  Kosanitza  is  one  of  savage  grandeur,  black  basaltic 


112       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

mountains,  their  summits  capped  with  snow,  towering 
on  either  hand.  I  learned  on  the  third  day  of  the 
march  that  a  flying  Bulgarian  column  had  climbed  over 
these  mountains  and  had  attacked  an  Army  Service 
Column  which  had  bivouacked  in  the  village  in  which 
I  had  slept  the  night  before.  Over  forty  men  were 
massacred,  many  being  tortured  to  death,  and  all  the 
bullocks  and  horses  driven  off  by  the  Albanian  rebels 
who  had  guided  the  Bulgarians  over  the  mountains. 
From  a  military  point  of  view  the  raid  was  of  little  im- 
portance, as  the  raiders  were  unable  even  to  carry  off 
the  contents  of  the  wagons,  but  it  was  a  proof  that  the 
feeling  of  the  Albanian  population  towards  their  Ser- 
bian conquerors  of  four  years  ago  was  still  tinged 
with  hostility. 

The  very  strictest  measures  had  to  be  taken  to  pre- 
vent horses,  forage  and  material  of  all  kinds  being 
stolen  during  the  night.  The  sentry  in  our  camp  one 
night  shot  an  Albanian  horse  thief  dead,  which  cer- 
tainly did  not  contribute  to  improve  the  relations  with 
the  man's  native  village.  It  was,  in  fact,  a  relief  when 
we  saw  on  the  horizon  the  line  of  the  old  Turkish 
blockhouses  which  formerly  guarded  the  Albanian 
frontier-line,  as  it  was  a  sign  that  the  passage  through 
the  mountain  gorge  was  drawing  to  an  end,  and  that 
we  would  soon  debouch  on  the  mountain  plateau. 

I  travelled  all  day  with  four  batteries  of  15.5  centi- 
metre guns,  each  drawn  by  fourteen  powerful  oxen, 
which  were  coming  from  Prokuplje,  where  they  had 
been  holding  the  Bulgarians  at  bay  while  the  Second 
and  Third  Armies  were  traversing  the  Krushevatz- 


Kurshojmlia  to  Pristina         113 

Kurshoumlia  pass.  The  officers  told  me  they  had  no 
other  orders  than  to  retreat  in  the  direction  of  Pris- 
tina, and  were  marching  in  that  direction  until  they 
should  receive  fresh  instructions.  As  we  climbed 
toward  the  upper  plateau,  the  cold  was  intense,  a 
violent  north-easterly  gale  driving  a  violent  snow- 
storm before  it.  But  in  spite  of  all  obstacles,  the  end- 
less columns  of  infantry,  cavalry,  artillery  and  bag- 
gage train  moved  steadily  southward,  and  we  had  the 
certainty  that  if  the  rate  of  progress  was  kept  up,  we 
would  be  in  Pristina  in  three  days'  time. 

About  two  in  the  afternoon  we  left  the  pass  and 
entered  the  plateau.  There  was  an  instant  improve- 
ment in  the  road,  the  rocky  and  muddy  mountain 
route  giving  way  to  a  fine,  broad  highway  in  excellent 
repair,  over  which  one  could  have  driven  a  motor-car 
at  sixty  miles  an  hour.  Under  these  improved  condi- 
tions I  ordered  the  horses  to  be  saddled,  and  my 
French  confrere  and  myself  pushed  ahead  to  look  for 
quarters  for  the  night. 

These  we  were  fortunate  enough  to  find  in  the 
gendarmerie  headquarters,  a  large  and  roomy  build- 
ing with  stabling  for  over  fifty  horses.  In  fact,  it 
was  more  a  fortress  than  a  house.  It  had  been  con- 
structed by  the  Turks  fifty  years  ago  as  one  of  the 
centres  for  maintaining  order  among  the  wild  Alba- 
nian tribesmen.  A  couple  of  score  of  Albanians  were 
employed  as  stable  hands,  water-carriers,  woodcutters, 
etc.  It  was  significant  of  the  relations  between  them 
and  their  Serbian  conquerors  that  if  one  of  them  was 


114       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

sent  to  the  well  a  hundred  yards  away  to  draw  a 
bucket  of  water,  he  was  accompanied  by  a  gendarme 
with  a  loaded  rifle.  If  this  was  not  done,  I  was  in- 
formed, the  Albanian  would  give  "leg  bail"  the  instant 
he  turned  the  corner.  All  the  gates  were  kept  bolted 
and  barred  with  a  sentry  outside  to  keep  the  men 
employed  within  the  building  from  taking  flight.  As 
the  Serbians,  twelve  months  ago,  disarmed  the  whole 
Albanian  population,  the  latter  was  helpless  as  far  as 
the  use  of  physical  force  was  concerned,  but  it  can 
easily  be  imagined  what  a  favourable  territory  it  was 
for  the  activities  of  German  and  Bulgarian  spies. 

We  arrived  at  Pristina  on  the  afternoon  of  the  15th 
November.  We  found  that  with  the  flood  of  Serbian 
refugees,  the  Albanian  element,  generally  predominant, 
had  been  somewhat  submerged.  During  the  last  two 
days'  march  our  bullock  wagon  was  attached  to  the 
Provision  Column  of  the  Combined  Division,  one  of 
the  corps  d'elite  of  the  Serbian  Army.  The  nineteen- 
year-old  wife  of  the  major  in  command  rode  with  him 
at  the  head  of  the  column ;  for  twelve  months  past 
she  had  shared  all  the  fatigues  of  the  campaign.  She 
told  me  she  was  married  ten  days  before  the  declara- 
tion of  war  by  Austria,  and  three  days  after  the 
wedding  her  husband  left  her  to  join  his  regiment. 
Three  months  later  he  was  brought  back  to  Belgrade 
with  a  splinter  of  a  six-inch  shell  in  his  chest  and  lay 
for  weeks  between  life  and  death.  As  soon  as  he  was 
able  to  ride  a  horse  again  he  asked  to  be  at  least 
allowed  to  serve  in  the  army  transport.    His  wife  had 


Kurshoumlia  to  Pristina         115 

accompanied  him,  and  for  the  past  year  had  shared  the 
fortunes  of  the  Serbian  Army.* 

Pristina  presented  an  extraordinary  spectacle.  On 
the  ampitheatre  of  hills  surrounding  the  town  were 
camps  and  bivouacs  extending  as  far  as  the  eye  could 
reach,  while  every  road  right  up  to  the  horizon  was 
filled  with  endless  columns,  horse,  foot,  artillery  and 
transport,  all  pouring  toward  the  town.  The  narrow 
streets  were  filled  to  overflowing  with  Serbian  soldiers 
of  every  arm,  French  aviators  and  engineer  ofificers, 
British  soldiers  of  the  Marine  Gun  Battery,  and 
French,  Russian,  Greek,  British  and  Roumanian  Red 
Cross  doctors  and  nurses. 

A  curious  optimism  prevailed.  Rumours  of  the 
most  extraordinary  nature  were  in  circulation;  the 
Bulgarians  had  been  driven  back  from  Prokuplje, 
Serbian  patrols  had  re-entered  Nish,  Uskub  had  been 
recaptured,  a  Russian  Army  had  entered  Bulgaria  and 
occupied  Negotin,  etc.,  etc.  But  there  is  no  country 
in  the  world  where  one  has  to  be  more  distrustful  of 
rumour  than  Serbia.  The  fact  that  the  whole  Second 
and  Third  Armies  were  continuing  their  movements 
of  retreat  discounted  considerably  the  reported  suc- 
cesses at  Prokuplje  and  Nish.  The  recapture  of  Uskub 
had  been  so  often  announced  and  as  often  denied, 
that  I  felt  I  would  want  better  authority  than  rumours 
in  the  bazaar  of  Pristina. 

On  the  contrary,  everj'thing  went  to  show  that  the 

*  The  Major  and  his  wife  and  the  men  of  their  convoy  were 
massacred  by  the  Albanians  a  few  weeks  later  in  the  vicinity 
of  Dibra. 


Ii6       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

position  was  as  critical  as  ever  and  growing  more 
desperate  every  hour.  No  one  seemed  to  know  either 
where  the  Government  or  the  Headquarters  were.  I 
inquired  at  half  a  dozen  points,  but  could  only  get  the 
vaguest  kind  of  reply  till  by  accident  I  met  a  colonel 
who  was  principal  aide-de-camp  to  King  Peter.  He  told 
me  the  King  had  arrived  in  Pristina  two  hours  before, 
and  that  both  the  Government  and  Headquarters  Staff 
were  at  Mitrovitza,  forty  kilometres  distant.  The 
situation,  he  informed  me,  was  getting  blacker  every 
hour,  and  unless  the  Serbian  Army  could,  by  a  last 
desperate  effort,  break  the  circle  of  bayonets  that  was 
slowly  but  surely  closing  in  on  it,  its  fate  was  sealed. 
The  money  crisis  was  as  acute  as  ever,  and  we  were 
rapidly  approaching  famine  prices.  I  had  to  pay  20 
dinars  for  adding  a  thickness  of  leather  to  the  soles 
of  my  boots.  At  any  other  time  a  couple  of  dinars 
would  have  been  regarded  as  exorbitant.  An  attempt 
had  been  made  to  relieve  the  monetary  situation  by 
putting  postage  stamps  in  circulation,  but  after  a  day 
or  two  these  in  their  turn  ceased  to  have  the  public 
confidence.  Maize  bread  was  being  sold  in  the  streets 
at  5  dinars  the  two-pound  loaf,  instead  of  25  centimes. 
The  soldiers,  however,  continued  to  receive  their  usual 
rations.  There  was,  I  was  told,  food  for  the  men  and 
forage  for  the  animals  for  ten  days  more;  after  that 
time  famine  would  be  staring  us  in  the  face.  This, 
of. course,  only  referred  to  the  Army;  the  civil  popula- 
tion had  been  face  to  face  with  starvation  for  a  long 
time. 


CHAPTER  VIII 

THE  RETREAT  OF  THE  FIRST  ARMY  FROM   KRALJEVO  TO 
PRISTINA 

AT  Pristina  we  were  able  to  get  some  particulars 
of  the  retreat  of  the  First  Army  under  the 
Voivode  Zhivoin  Mishitch,  which  had  been  marching 
through  the  mountains  on  a  line  parallel  to  that  of  the 
Second  and  Third  Armies  with  which  we  had  been. 
This  route  ran  from  Kraljevo  via  Rashka  to  Mitro- 
vitza,  whence  the  route  lay  across  the  plain  of  Kossovo 
to  Pristina. 

I  have  already,  in  an  earlier  chapter,  described  my 
visit  to  Kraljevo,  where  the  Government  and  the 
Diplomatic  Corps  had  taken  refuge  on  the  i8th  Oc- 
tober, w^hen  the  advance  of  the  Bulgarians  had 
menaced  Nish.  A  part  of  the  Diplomatic  and  Consular 
Corps,  which  had  not  been  able  to  find  lodgings  in 
Kraljevo,  was  quartered  at  Tchatchak,  a  small  town  a 
few  miles  from  Kraljevo.  A  few  days  later,  the  26th 
October,  the  turning  movement  executed  from  the 
west  by  the  Austro-German  forces  under  General  von 
Gallwitz  threatened  first  Uzhitze  and  then  Tchatchak, 
and  caused  orders  to  be  given  for  the  immediate  evac- 
uation of  these  towns.  This  was  carried  out  between 
the  26th  and  29th  October.    Simultaneously  came  the 

117 


ii8       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

news  that  the  Headquarters  Staff  had  evacuated 
Kraguyevatz,  and  installed  itself  at  Krushevatz.  Two 
days  later  the  Government  and  the  Diplomatic  Corps 
quitted  Kraljevo  to  traverse  the  pass  through  the 
mountains  to  gain  Rashka,  on  the  frontier  of  what 
was  formerly  the  Turkish  Sandjak  of  Novi  Bazaar. 

With  the  Government  the  population  of  all  the  towns 
threatened  by  the  Austro-German  advance  poured  like 
a  flood  through  the  mountain  pass.  On  all  the  routes 
converging  toward  the  valley  of  the  Ibar  marched 
thousands  of  homeless,  starving  people.  As  they  ap- 
proached the  mountains  they  found  the  towns  and  vil- 
lages becoming  smaller  and  smaller  and  less  able  to 
afford  hospitality  tO'  the  population  in  flight.  Thou- 
sands were  forced  to  camp  in  the  open  in  the  pouring 
rain,  their  miserable  wagons,  filled  with  such  furniture 
and  household  goods  as  they  had  been  able  to  save, 
parked  in  the  mud,  surrounded  by  the  cattle,  sheep  and 
pigs  they  had  been  able  to  drive  with  them. 

At  first  the  army  was  in  the  rear  of  this  fleeing  mass, 
fighting  a  rearguard  action  with  the  advancing  enemy 
and  holding  them  in  check.  But  soon  they  were 
menaced  on  their  rear  just  as  the  Second  and  Third 
/\rmies  had  been,  and  forced  to  traverse  the  mountains 
in  all  haste  so  as  to  gain  the  Sandjak  of  Novi  Bazaar 
before  the  enemy  could  close  the  other  end  of  the 
pass. 

As  a  consequence  the  retreating  army  soon  swelled 
the  ranks  of  the  fleeing  population.  The  troops  found 
the  roads  encumbered  with  a  mass  of  peasants, 
wagons,  herds  of  cattle,  droves  of  sheep  and  all  the 


The  Retreat  of  the  First  Army     119 

impedimenta  of  a  nation  in  flight.  It  was  only  at  the 
price  of  tireless  effort  that  the  troops,  the  artillery  and 
the  baggage  train  forced  their  way  along  the  crowded 
roads.  The  spectacle  of  this  starving  multitude  was 
continually  under  the  eyes  of  the  retreating  troops, 
and  naturally  did  not  tend  to  encourage  them.  Many 
of  the  regiments  were  themselves  without  bread,  and 
wept  tears  of  rage  at  their  helplessness  to  succor  or 
defend  their  starving  compatriots. 

A  French  surgeon  who  took  part  in  this  terrible 
march  gave  me  the  following  account  of  their  journey  : 

"Our  group,"  he  said,  "consisted  of  Drs.  Collet 
and  Gandart  (two  surgeons  with  the  rank  of  Colonel), 
nine  surgeon-majors,  six  assistant  surgeons  and  seven 
nurses.  We  managed,  after  a  long  search,  to  find  five 
ox-wagons  to  transport  the  more  indispensable  part 
of  our  ambulance  outfit  and  our  baggage.  We  left 
Kraljevo  on  November  3rd.  All  we  had  in  the  way 
of  provisions  were  a  few  pounds  of  biscuits.  We  had 
not  a  single  cooking  utensil. 

"W^e  marched  on  foot,  forcing  our  way  with 
difficulty  through  the  mass  of  people  and  vehicles 
which  blocked  the  route.  By  sundown  we  had  not 
discovered  any  signs  of  a  village,  and  determined  to 
camp  for  the  night  in  a  majestic  amphitheatre  of  deso- 
late, snow-capped  mountains.  On  the  opposite  side  of 
the  Ibar,  on  one  of  the  loftiest  summits  of  the  range, 
we  could  see  the  ruins  of  an  immense  castle.  These 
were  the  ruins  of  the  castle  of  Maglitch,  the  'Castle  of 
the  Mists,'  dating  from  the  time  of  Stephen  Nemanja, 
who  reigned  in  Serbia  in  the  Middle  Ages. 


120       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

"Here  we  installed  ourselves  as  best  we  could.  We 
cut  some  maize  in  a  neighbouring  field  to  make  our- 
selves a  bed.  Luckily  we  had  met  en  route  a  peasant 
driving  some  sheep,  who  had  sold  us  one.  This  we 
roasted  whole  on  a  spit  made  from  the  branch  of  a  tree. 
When  it  was  cooked  we  cut  it  up,  by  the  light  of  a 
guttering  candle,  with  our  pocket-knives,  and  managed 
thus  to  stay  our  hunger, 

"After  this  meal  we  lay  down  on  our  bed  of  maize 
straw,  pressing  one  against  the  other  for  warmth,  for 
the  cold  was  severe.  At  first  the  night  was  fine  and 
starlit,  but  after  midnight  a  wind  sprang  up,  bringing 
with  it  the  rain,  which  fell  in  a  deluge. 

"At  six  o'clock,  soaked  to  the  skin  and  frozen  to  the 
marrow,  we  resumed  our  weary  march.  We  marched 
all  day  without  anything  to  eat,  and  when  at  last, 
completely  exhausted,  we  stopped  for  the  night,  we 
had  not  even  maize  straw  to  make  a  bed  and  were 
forced  to  sleep  on  the  bare  ground  on  the  side  of  the 
mountain.  Some  Austrian  prisoners  who  arrived  at 
our  halting-place  had  managed  to  find  some  wood 
and  had  built  some  fires.  We  gathered  round  these  and 
boiled  some  tea,  which  we  drank  without  sugar.  We 
passed  the  night  without  sleeping  beside  the  fires,  and 
at  dawn  resumed  our  weary  march.  It  was  evening 
before  we  reached  Rashka,  where  we  arrived  fam- 
ished, exhausted,  and  half  dead  with  cold." 

Rashka  in  its  turn  became  for  a  week  the  new 
capital  of  Serbia.  Here  the  Government,  the  Diplo- 
matic Corps  and  the  Headquarters  Staff  took  up  their 
quarters.    A  French  confrere,  M.  Henry  Barby,  who 


The  Retreat  of  the  First  Army     121 

took  part  in  the  retreat  of  the  First  Army,  met  M. 
Pashitch,  the  Serbian  Prime  Minister,  on  the  bridge 
over  the  Ibar,  regarding  that  landscape  with  a  melan- 
choly gaze.  "It  is  here  that  Serbia  had  its  birth," 
he  remarked,  "God  grant  that  Rashka  may  not  be  its 
tomb." 

But  it  was  impossible  for  the  Government  and  the 
First  Army  to  remain  longer  at  Rashka.  They  could 
only  stop  there  as  long  as  the  Second  and  Third 
Armies  were  between  them  and  the  Bulgarians,  and 
were  in  a  position  to  prevent  the  army  of  Field- 
Marshal  von  Mackensen  from  debouching  from  the 
Krushevatz-Kurshoimilia  pass  at  the  latter  village. 
When  these  armies  continued  their  retreat  towards 
Pristina,  the  First  Army,  in  order  to  maintain  the 
liaison  with  them,  had  to  resume  its  march  and  fall 
back  towards  Mitrovitza. 

Once  there  the  Government  would  again  find  itself 
in  contact  with  a  railway,  the  line  which  runs  from 
Mitrovitza  to  Uskub  via  Voutchitrn  and  Pristina.  As 
Uskub  had  been  for  a  long  time  past  in  the  hands  of  the 
Bulgarians,  it  could  only  be  utilized  as  far  as  Lipljan, 
a  station  thirty  kilometres  beyond  Pristina,  whence 
the  road  runs  to  Prisrend  on  the  frontier  of  Albania. 


CHAPTER  IX 


AT  MITROVITZA 


AS  it  was  difficult  to  get  any  clear  idea  of  the  situa- 
tion without  finding  out  definitely  the  position 
of  the  First  Army  and  the  intentions  of  the  Govern- 
ment and  Headquarters  Staff,  I  determined  to  take 
the  train  to  Mitrovitza,  forty  kilometres  distant,  where 
the  latter  was  established.  It  was  also  rumoured  that 
that  nomadic  banking  establishment,  the  Banque 
Franco-Serbe,  was  moving  with  the  Government,  and 
as  my  money  was  beginning  to  run  low  I  was  anxious 
to  get  a  cheque  on  Paris  cashed  by  it. 

The  railway  to  Mitrovitza  runs  across  the  historic 
plain  of  Kossovo,  where  five  centuries  ago  Serbia, 
after  a  last  desperate  battle,  fell  under  the  domination 
of  the  Turks.  The  tomb  of  the  Turkish  Sultan  Murad 
I.,  who  was  slain  by  a  wounded  Serbian  soldier  in  the 
very  moment  of  his  victory,  is  one  of  the  striking 
features  of  the  landscape.  The  battle  of  Kossovo. 
though  it  ended  in  the  defeat  of  the  Tsar  Lazar's 
Serbian  Army,  is  one  of  the  most  glorious  feats  of 
arms  in  the  annals  of  Serbia,  and  its  memory  five 
centuries  later  spurred  on  the  army  of  King  Peter  to 
fresh  acts  of  heroism. 

One   of   the  curious    features  of   railway  building 


At  Mitrovitza  123 

in  the  Balkans  is  tliat  the  railway  stations  are  always 
at  considerable  distance  from  the  towns  they  serve. 
In  Pristina  the  distance  is  no  less  than  ten  kilometres 
or  two  hours'  good  walking.  The  major  in  command 
of  our  transport  column  kindly  lent  my  French 
colleague  and  myself  a  two-horse  carriage  to  convey 
us  to  the  station,  and  about  midday  we  were  en  route 
across  the  historic  plain  of  Kossovo  for  Mitrovitza. 
During  the  whole  forty  kilometres  we  had  ample 
evidence  that  the  retreat  on  Pristina  continued.  The 
roads  were  filled  with  endless  lines  of  transport  con- 
voys, while  in  every  station  train  after  train  was  being 
loaded  and  sent  off. 

In  the  train  I  met  a  Russian  confrere,  the  corre- 
spondent of  the  Novoe  Vreniia.  He  had  been  with 
the  troops  opposing  the  Bulgarian  advance  from 
Nish  and  Prokuplje,  and  had  fallen  back  with  them 
to  Pristina.  He  was  desirous  of  crossing  by  Ipek  and 
Andreyevitza,  to  send  off  his  dispatches  from  the 
powerful  French  wireless  station  at  Podgoritza,  in 
Montenegro,  now  our  only  means  of  communication 
with  the  outer  world. 

At  Mitrovitza  a  disappointment  awaited  us.  The 
Government  and  Headquarters  had  left  by  special 
train  for  Prisrend  an  hour  before.  Not  only  this, 
but  orders  had  been  given  to  evacuate  the  town  and 
the  last  train,  we  were  told,  would  leave  at  one 
o'clock  the  following  day.  There  was  nothing  for 
it  but  to  wait  for  this  train,  so  we  tramped  off  to 
the  town  situated,  as  usual,  a  mile  or  two  from  the 
station.    We  found  the  inhabitants  of  Mitrovitza  in  a 


124       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

state  of  panic.  All  the  Turkish  shops  and  cafes  were 
closed  and  barricaded. 

There  is  no  doubt  the  sympathies  of  the  Mohamme- 
dan portion  of  the  population  were  with  the  German 
invaders,  but  as  there  were  large  bodies  of  Serbian 
troops  in  the  town  and  still  more  outside  opposing  the 
German  advance,  the  terrified  inhabitants  saw  the  pos- 
sibility, not  to  say  the  probability,  of  a  German 
bombardment.  Thousands  were,  therefore,  preparing 
to  evacuate  the  city.  I  saw  that  the  prospects  of  the 
one  o'clock  train  next  day  being  taken  by  assault  by 
a  crowd  of  terror-stricken  fugitives  were  very  great, 
so  that  when  my  Russian  colleague  arrived  with  the 
news  that  there  would  be  a  special  train  sent  off  at 
six  o'clock  in  the  morning,  we  determined  to  travel  by 
it  if  possible.  But  meantime  the  problem  was  to  find 
food  and  lodging.  No  one  would  accept  a  centime  in 
paper  money.  Fortunately  we  possessed  a  small  but 
sufficient  store  of  silver  pieces,  and  were  able  to  pro- 
cure a  very  unsatisfactory  meal  and  a  still  more  un- 
satisfactory bed  above  a  Turkish  cafe. 

As  the  town  was  plunged  in  Egyptian  darkness  and 
there  was  no  amusement  in  stumbling  along  narrow, 
deserted  Turkish  lanes  and  alleys,  there  was  nothing 
for  it  but  to  go  to  bed  at  eight  o'clock.  About  mid- 
night I  was  awakened  by  sounds  of  life  and  movement 
in  the  street  below.  There  were  sounds  of  rolling 
vehicles  and  trampling  of  feet.  I  thought  at  first  it 
was  the  population  in  flight,  but  the  sound  was  too 
regular  for  that.  I  got  up  and  went  to  the  window. 
It  was  the  First  Serbian  Army  in  full  retreat. 


At  Mitrovitza  125 

By  the  light  of  the  guttering  candle  swinging  above 
the  door  of  our  cafe,  1  could  see  company  after  com- 
pany, squadron  after  scj[uadron,  and  battery  after  bat- 
tery pouring  past.  Hour  after  hour  the  steady  "tramp, 
tramp"  of  thousands  of  feet  echoed  in  the  narrow 
streets.  It  was  four  o'clock  in  the  morning  when  the 
last  battery  rumbled  through,  the  roll  of  the  wheels 
drowning  the  soft  patter  of  the  hoofs  of  the  oxen 
drawing  the  guns. 

And  then  it  began  to  rain,  and  such  rain !  Talk 
of  the  "windows  of  heaven  being  opened,"  the  whole 
side  of  the  house  was  out.  It  came  down  in  sheets, 
it  came  down  in  buckets,  it  rained  ramrods.  The 
gutters  in  the  centre  of  the  streets  became  rushing 
torrents,  while  Niagaras  poured  from  all  the  over- 
hanging eaves.  And  in  the  midst  of  this  deluge  we 
had  to  set  out  for  the  station  three  miles  away.  The 
road,  which  yesterday  had  been  muddy,  was  today  a 
"slough  of  despond."  In  the  Egyptian  darkness  there 
was  no  means  of  avoiding  pools  and  puddles.  The 
chilly  rain,  driven  by  half  a  gale,  blinded  one,  and 
every  now  and  then  we  would  splash  right  up  to  the 
knees  in  pools  of  muddy  water. 

At  last  we  reached  the  station  soaked  to  the  skin, 
only  to  learn  that  the  supposed  special  train  was  a 
myth  and  that  there  would  be  no  means  of  transport 
back  to  Pristina  till  one  o'clock  in  the  afternoon.  The 
idea  of  splashing  our  way  l^ack  to  our  cheerless  room 
in  the  cafe  in  the  rain  and  darkness  was  beyond  my 
courage.  I  declared  that  I  would  first  try  to  dry  myself 
at  the  immense  fire  burning:  in   the   station-master's 


126       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

office,  and  wait  for  daylight.  Every  moment  the  gale 
increased  in  fierceness,  while  the  cold  became  more 
intense.  The  rain  had  long  since  turned  to  snow.  I 
thought  of  the  plight  of  the  twenty  thousand  men  of 
the  First  Army  whom  I  had  seen  tramping  through 
the  town,  and  who  were  now  out  in  the  desolation  of 
the  plain  of  Kossovo,  on  their  forty  kilometres'  march 
to  Pristina. 

Just  at  this  moment  a  locomotive  backed  into  the 
station  and  stood  throbbing  and  humming  opposite 
the  station-master's  office.  "Where  is  it  bound  for?" 
I  asked  him.  "Pristina."  "Can't  we  travel  by  it?" 
He  looked  at  our  blue,  white  and  red  brassards  (which 
meant  that  we  were  attached  to  the  Headquarters) 
hesitatingly,  but  finally  said,  "No,  it's  quite  impossible." 
He  must,  however,  have  consulted  someone  in  author- 
ity, for  two  minutes  later  he  came  running  in  to 
announce,  "If  you  can  be  ready  in  half  a  minute,  you 
can  take  the  engine."  It  did  not  take  us  more  than 
ten  seconds  to  climb  aboard,  and  a  minute  later  we 
shot  out  into  the  blizzard.  Unfortunately  we  were 
running  tender  first,  so  that  we  had  no  protection 
against  the  weather.  But  we  were  too  glad  to  get 
away  from  Mitrovitza  to  worry  about  such  trifles. 
Every  now  and  then  we  dashed  through  flooded  parts 
of  the  line  with  the  water  up  to  the  footplate.  When 
the  line  ran  alongside  the  road  we  could  see  that  it 
was  strewn  with  the  dead  bodies  of  horses  and  oxen 
which  had  succumbed  to  cold  and  fatigue. 

When  we  got  to  Pristina  station  we  found  it  a  scene 
of  wintry  desolation.    It  was  thronged  with  thousands 


At  Mitrovitza  127 

of  troops,  waiting  to  entrain,  who  sought  shelter  from 
the  snow,  which  was  now  being  driven  by  a  regular 
hurricane,  behind  sheds,  out-houses  and  station  build- 
ings. In  the  station-master's  ofifice  I  met  an  English 
officer  in  the  Serbian  Service,  Captain  Piagge,  who 
was  waiting  to  entrain  with  his  machine-gim  section. 
He  gave  us  the  latest  news  and,  what  was  still  better, 
some  excellent  French  brandy  from  his  pocket  flask. 
But  if  the  brandy  was  good,  it  was  more  than  could 
be  said  of  the  news,  which  was  as  bad  as  could  be. 
The  Serbian  Army  was  menaced  from  all  sides.  Only 
one  line  of  retreat  remained  open  to  it  in  the  direction 
of  Prisrend.  The  Headquarters  Staff  had,  therefore, 
decided  to  abandon  the  tactics  of  retreat  which  had 
been  imposed  on  them  by  the  Allies,  to  take  the 
offensive  and  to  risk  one  last  desperate  battle  to  re- 
trieve the  situation. 

Since  the  Austro-German  attack  on  the  Danube, 
the  instructions  of  the  Allies  to  the  Serbian  Staff  had 
been  to  avoid  risking  everything  on  a  pitched  battle 
and  to  retreat  slowly,  delaying  the  advance  of  the 
enemy  as  much  as  possible,  until  the  Allies  should  be 
in  a  position  to  come  to  their  assistance.  This  the 
Serbians  had  done  for  nearly  six  weeks,  with  the 
result  that  they  were  now  almost  forced  back  against 
the  mountains  of  Albania,  and  the  Allies  seemed  as 
far  as  ever  from  being  able  to  help  them. 

The  Serbian  General  Staff  had  therefore  decided 
the  only  chance  left  was  to  hurl  the  whole  Serbian 
Army  on  the  Bulgarians'  positions  in  the  south,  burst 
their  way  over  the   Katchanik  mountain  range  and 


128       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

recapture  Uskub.  Once  there,  they  could  give  their 
hand  to  the  French  force  and  form  a  new  front  facing 
east,  with  Salonica  as  their  point  d'appui  on  their 
extreme  right.  It  was  a  last  and  desperate  throw  of 
the  dice,  a  forlorn  hope  to  be  undertaken  with  an 
army  almost  in  a  state  of  exhaustion.  But  there  was 
a  fighting  chance  of  success,  and  the  retreat  on  Pris- 
rend  meant  nothing  but  disaster. 


CHAPTER  X 


THE  SERBIAN   OFFENSIVE 


AS  the  blizzard  still  continued,  my  French 
confrere  and  I  stopped  as  long  as  we  could 
in  the  railway  station  of  Pristina,  watching  all  day 
the  entraining  of  the  Serbian  Army,  now  en  route 
for  its  offensive  in  the  Katchanik  mountains  against 
the  Bulgarians.  Regiment  after  regiment  and  battery 
after  battery  lined  up  under  the  pitiless  blast  of  the 
tempest  and  in  the  driving  snow  to  await  their  turn 
to  entrain.  The  men  were  chilled  to  the  very  bone 
and  had  before  them  a  long  railway  journey  in  open 
trucks,  exposed  to  the  fierce  gale.  On  arriving  at 
their  destination,  they  would  have  to  begin  their  weary 
march  in  the  snow-covered  mountains,  advancing 
against  an  enemy  strongly  entrenched.  Their  task 
seemed  one  above  human  powers,  but  it  was  the  one 
last  desperate  chance  in  the  terrible  game  of  war. 

No  other  choice  was  left  to  them.  The  Austro- 
German  force,  under  General  von  Gallwitz,  advancing 
from  the  north-west  was  only  fifteen  short  miles  away. 
Field-Marshal  von  Mackensen,  on  the  north,  was 
slowly  but  surely  drawing  nearer  to  Pristina,  while  a 
Bulgarian  Army  was  pouring  from  the  southwest.  As 
the  whole  of  the  southern  frontier  from  Strumnitza 

129 


130       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

to  Monastir  was  now  in  the  possession  of  the  Bul- 
garians, the  circle  of  steel  round  the  doomed  Serbian 
Army  was  almost  complete.  Only  one  single  line  of 
retreat  still  remained  open  to  it,  the  route  to  Prisrend. 
But  that  route  offered  no  salvation.  The  enemy's  line 
would  close  in  as  inexorably  on  Prisrend  as  it  was 
doing  on  Pristina,  and  at  Prisrend  no  further  retreat 
would  be  possible,  the  limits  of  Serbian  territory 
would  be  reached.  Beyond  Prisrend  lay  the  desolate 
mountain  ranges  of  Albania. 

The  fate  of  King  Peter's  gallant  army  therefore 
depended  on  the  last  throw  of  the  dice,  a  desperate 
offensive  to  break  the  encircling  Bulgarian  line  in  the 
direction  of  Uskub.  If  the  attempt  should  be  a  success 
and  should  be  supported  by  a  simultaneous  attack  by 
the  Allies  from  Salonica,  there  was  just  a  fighting 
chance  that  the  Serbs  might  be  able  to  join  hands 
with  the  French  and  British  troops.  If  this  was  done, 
it  would  at  least  offer  a  safe  line  of  retreat  into  Greek 
territory. 

The  officers  with  whom  I  talked  in  the  railway 
station  had  few  illusions  as  tO'  the  possible  success  of 
this  desperate  effort.  Their  troops  were  exhausted 
and  discouraged  by  their  three-hLmdred-mile  march 
from  the  Danube.  Desertions  had  been  numerous  and 
provisions  and  fodder  were  running  low.  The  effort 
seemed  beyond  the  strength  of  the  much-tried  army. 
But,  as  I  have  said,  it  was  the  last  hope,  and  as  such 
it  was  accepted.  Officers  and  men  braced  themselves 
for  this  final  effort. 

But  when  three  o'clock  arrived,  we  could  no  longer 


The  Serbian  Offensive  131 

delay  our  departure  for  Pristina.  We  had  a  two  hours' 
tramp  before  us  to  reach  the  town,  and  by  five  o'clock 
night  would  be  beginning  to  fall.  In  Serbia  there  is 
little  or  no  twilight,  darkness  follows  a  few  minutes 
after  tlie  setting  of  the  sun.  As  we  had  to  find  our 
wagon  among  a  mass  of  ten  thousand  parked  on  the 
mountains  round  the  town,  we  did  not  want  to  reach 
Pristina  after  nightfall. 

When  we  emerged  from  the  station  a  wonderful 
sight  met  our  eyes.  As  far  as  the  eye  could  reach, 
the  snow-covered  plain  of  Kossovo  extended  on  every 
side.  Every  feature  of  the  landscape  was  blotted  out 
by  a  shroud  of  snow,  feet  deep.  Over  this,  long  lines 
of  snow-clad  figures  could  be  seen  moving,  the 
columns  extending  for  miles.  These  were  Serbian  reg- 
iments starting  on  their  weary  march  to  the  mountain 
range  over  which  they  must  force  their  way  to  attempt 
to  join  hands  with  the  French.  They  had  a  peculiarly 
ghostly  appearance  due  to  the  fact  that  every  man  tried 
to  protect  himself  from  the  driving  snow  by  wrapping 
himself  in  the  section  of  tent  canvas  he  carried. 

By  this  time  the  wind  had  fallen,  and  the  curious 
silence  which  accompanies  heavy  snow  reigned  every- 
where. In  every  direction  were  the  ghostly  columns 
plodding  in  single  file  over  fields  and  along  roads.  On 
all  sides  were  dead  horses  and  oxen,  singly  and  in 
heaps,  half  buried  in  snow,  with  swarms  of  carrion 
crows  whirling  and  croaking  overhead.  It  was  a 
realization  of  the  retreat  from  Moscow  such  as  I  never 
expected  to  see.  The  gaunt,  half -starved  faces  of  the 
passing  soldiers  did  nothing  to  destroy  the  illusion. 


132       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

When,  after  a  two  hours'  tramp,  we  reached  Pris- 
tina  a  fresh  surprise  awaited  us.  All  the  hills  around 
the  town,  which  twenty-four  hours  before  had  been 
covered  with  tens  of  thousands  of  transport  wagons, 
were  absolutely  deserted.  The  red  rays  of  the  setting 
sun  lit  up  nothing  but  rolling  miles  of  virgin  snow, 
not  a  wagon  or  an  ox  was  to  be  seen.  On  climbing 
to  the  summit  of  the  hill  where  we  had  left  the 
transport  of  the  Combined  Division,  with  which  was 
our  baggage  wagon,  we  found  nothing  left  but  the 
four  field  guns  which  had  been  placed  in  battery  there 
to  defend  the  convoys  against  aircraft.  All  the  men 
of  the  battery  could  tell  us  was  that  the  whole  trans- 
port had  inspanned  and  left  two  hours  after  our 
departure  for  Mitrovitza,  the  previous  day.  One  of 
the  men  thought  we  would  find  it  in  camp  near  the 
station,  but  he  was  not  sure. 

The  situation  was  not  a  cheerful  one.  There  we 
were  at  nightfall  on  a  snow-covered,  desolate  moun- 
tain, while  the  wagon  (which  contained  our  food  and 
baggage  and  formed  our  sleeping  quarters)  and  our 
two  horses  had  completely  disappeared.  All  we  pos- 
sessed in  the  world  was  the  clothes  we  stood  up  in,  and 
this  in  a  town  where  accommodation  was  not  to  be  had 
and  food  non-existent.  Then  I  remembered  that  two 
days  before  I  had  found  lodgings  for  three  French 
Red  Cross  nurses  who  were  leaving  for  Prisrend.  If 
they  had  left  their  rooms  might  be  vacant.  They  took 
some  finding  in  the  darkness,  but  we  finally  located 
them.  We  found  them  occupied  by  a  Russian 
military   doctor  and   his   stafif.     He  had   stabled   the 


The  Serbian  Offensive  133 

wagons  and  pack-horses  of  his  ambulance  in  the  court- 
yard, while  he  and  his  six  aides  had  commandeered 
the  rooms.  But  in  war  time  where  there's  room  for 
six  there's  room  for  eight,  and  he  gave  up  a  corner  of 
the  floor  as  our  sleeping  accommodation. 

He  informed  us  the  Headquarters  Staff  of  the 
Second  Army  had  arrived  in  Pristina.  This  solved  the 
question  of  food  till  we  should  find  our  wagon,  if  we 
ever  should  do  so.  While  we  were  dining  at  the  mess 
that  evening  we  received  confirmation  of  the  Serbian 
offensive  in  the  direction  of  Uskub.  It  was  clear  that 
it  was  looked  upon  as  a  forlorn  hope,  a  fighting  chance 
that  might  enable  the  Serbians  to  retrieve  an  ap- 
parently hopeless  situation.  At  the  same  time  no  one 
had  any  illusions  as  to  the  desperate  nature  of  the 
task,  in  view  of  the  terrible  privations  and  fatigues 
through  which  the  troops  had  just  passed.  But  the 
courage  and  self-sacrifice  of  the  Serbian  soldier  seem 
to  have  no  limits,  and  it  was  felt  that  what  was 
humanly  possible  would  be  done. 

The  whole  of  the  next  day  we  devoted  to  a  fruit- 
less hunt  for  our  missing  wagon.  The  only  clue  to  its 
possible  whereabouts  was  that  the  Transport  Column 
of  the  Combined  Division  was  encamped  at  Lipljan. 
a  village  about  thirty  kilometres  distant.  On  the 
departure  of  the  Russian  doctor  and  his  ambulance 
from  the  house  where  we  had  been  stopping  we  had 
offered  hospitality  to  a  section  of  the  Scottish 
Women's  Medical  Unit,  which  was  en  route  for  Pris- 
rend.  As  the  sections  had  to  pass  through  Lipljan,  Miss 
Chesney,  the  doctor  in  charge,  offered  us  seats  in  their 


134       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

automobile.  On  arriving  at  Lipljan,  we  discovered 
that  the  Transport  Column  had  already  left.  All  we 
could  find  out  was  that  it  was  marching  in  the  direction 
of  Prisrend.  We  therefore  arranged  to  continue  our 
journey  with  the  Scottish  ambulance. 

All  day  long  at  Lipljan  we  could  hear  the  battle 
raging.  The  mountain  range  to  our  left  was  the  scene 
of  the  fighting.  During  the  whole  afternoon  I  watched, 
with  my  field-glass,  the  Bulgarian  shrapnel  bursting 
along  the  crest.  At  one  moment  a  couple  of  companies 
of  Bulgarian  infantry  even  managed  to  slip  between 
the  Serbian  lines  and  pushed  forward  till  they  were 
able  to  open  fire  on  the  railway  station  about  300 
yards  from  where  our  ambulance  was  encamped.  They 
were  unaware  that  a  Serbian  cavalry  regiment  was 
in  bivouac  behind  a  number  of  haystacks  about  a 
mile  away.  This  regiment  hastily  saddled  and  went 
off  at  a  fast  trot.  A  few  minutes  later  they  were  at 
the  railway  station.  The  men  drew  carbines  and  dis- 
mounted, and  in  twenty  minutes  the  Bulgarians  were 
driven  off.  The  usual  endless  line  of  army  transport 
was  pouring  through  Lipljan  from  Pristina.  The  con- 
ductors kept  looking  anxiously  at  the  line  of  bursting 
shrapnel  along  the  crests  of  the  mountain  six  miles 
away;  they  evidently  realized  that  if  the  Bulgarians 
should  win  the  heights  it  would  be  all  up  with  the 
transport  on  the  Pristina  and  Prisrend  road. 

When  I  went  to  sleep  that  night  in  Lipljan  I  could 
still  hear  the  sound  of  the  guns.  Next  morning  we 
discovered  the  Scottish  ambulance  was  gone.  About 
two  o'clock   in  the  morning  there  had  been   a   tre- 


The  Serbian  Offensive  135 

mendoiis  outburst  of  heavy  gim-fire  in  the  mountains. 
It  seemed  so  near  that  the  nurses  had  got  alarmed, 
struck  camp,  loaded  their  wagons  and  automobiles  and 
gone  off.  So  my  French  confrere  and  I  were  finally 
reduced  to  tramping  our  way  to  Prisrend.  Fortunately 
the  weather  was  fine  and  the  roads  passable,  and  we 
covered  our  35  kilometres  a  day  without  difficulty.  In 
the  evening  we  managed  to  find  a  blockhouse  with  a 
gendarmerie  officer  in  command  who  requisitioned  us 
a  room  in  the  house  of  an  Albanian  peasant  named 
Sali  Aga.  Once  the  details  of  price  arranged  (all,  I 
may  mention,  in  the  favour  of  Sali  Aga)  he  received 
us  with  patriarchal  dignity,  treating  us  as  honoured 
guests.  He  killed  and  prepared  a  well-fed  fowl  and 
produced  quantities  of  Albanian  cheese  and  butter. 
Of  course  the  only  sleeping  accommodation  was  straw 
alongside  the  fire,  but  as  at  one  moment  it  had  looked 
as  'if  we  would  have  to  sleep  by  the  roadside  in  the 
open  air,  we  were  thankful  for  even  that. 

The  next  day,  about  thirty  kilometres  from  Prisrend 
I  at  last  discovered  the  Commissariat  Column  of  the 
Combined  Division  we  had  been  looking  for  for  five 
days  past,  in  the  hope  of  discovering  our  lost  baggage 
wagon.  The  Major  in  command  told  me  that  when 
his  column  received  orders  to  leave  Pristina  our  man 
Stance  had  left  with  our  wagon  for  the  railway  station 
to  await  our  return  from  Mitrovitza.  Since  then  he 
had  not  seen  him.  This  was  not  cheerful,  but  the  news 
he  gave  me  from  the  front  was  less  cheerful  still. 

At  first  the  Serbian  attack  on  the  Bulgarian  front 
in  the  Katchanik  Mountains  had  been  successful;  the 


136       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

Serbians  had  advanced  to  Giljane.  King  Peter's  troops 
fought  with  desperate  courage,  driving  the  Bulgarians 
from  one  mountain  summit  after  the  other.  But  as 
soon  as  the  Bulgarians  realized  the  serious  nature  of 
the  Serbian  offensive  they  brought  up  reinforcements 
from  all  sides.  With  the  Germans  advancing  in  their 
rear  the  Serbians  could  not  fight  a  long-drawn-out 
battle.  It  was  for  them  a  matter  of  life  or  death  to 
break  through  the  Bulgarian  lines.  If  they  failed  to 
do  so  the  two  German  Armies  together  with  the  Bul- 
garian forces  coming  from  Nish,  would  take  them  in 
the  rear.  This  would  mean  the  complete  encirclement 
of  the  Serbian  Army  and  its  unconditional  surrender. 
In  addition  to  the  military  problem  there  was  also 
that  of  food  supplies.  The  territory  still  in  the  hands 
of  the  Serbian  Army  now  amounted  to  only  a  few 
hundred  square  kilometres.  It  was  out  of  the  question 
that  this  could  furnish  supplies  for  an  army,  even  for 
a  few  days.  In  the  transport  wagons  of  the  Combined 
Divisions  there  were,  the  Major  told  me,  supplies  for 
barely  two  weeks.  After  these  were  consumed  it 
would  be  impossible  to  renew  them.  Other  divisions 
were  even  in  worse  case.  The  same  held  good  of 
munitions.  Each  division  had  what  they  carried  with 
them  and  what  was  contained  in  the  wagons  of  the 
Reserve  Columns.  Ten  days  would  see  the  last 
cartridge  fired.  The  question  of  forage  for  the  horses 
and  transport  oxen  was  even  more  acute.  The  whole 
country  had  been  swept  clean  of  corn,  oats,  hay  and 
maize,  and  in  less  than  a  week's  time  there  would  be 
a  hundred  thousand  animals  starving. 


The  Serbian  Offensive  137 

The  advance  on  Uskub  had  been  an  effort  beyond 
the  strength  of  the  exhausted  Serbian  Army,  and 
from  all  reports  it  had  fought  to  a  standstill,  which, 
under  the  circumstances,  was  equivalent  to  defeat. 
The  cause  of  Serbia  was  lost.  The  valiant  little  nation 
which  had  fought  a  victorious  war  with  Turkey,  had 
repulsed  the  treacherous  attack  of  Bulgaria,  had  con- 
ducted a  successful  campaign  in  Albania,  and  ad- 
ministered to  Austria  one  of  the  most  crushing  defeats 
in  her  history,  had  at  last  been  beaten  to  her  knees 
by  an  irresistible  coalition  of  her  enemies.  After 
four  years  of  ceaseless  war,  in  which  the  flower  of 
her  manhood  had  died  on  the  battlefield,  Serbia  with 
her  200,000  bayonets,  the  last  levies  of  a  heroic  people, 
was  face  to  face  with  700,000  enemies  with  practically 
unlimited  resources  of  war  material.  Her  Allies  were 
powerless  to  aid  her,  so  that  her  King  and  Govern- 
ment were  now  forced  to  take  the  supreme  resolution, 
in  this  hour  of  stress. 

On  entering  Prisrend  I  found  it  a  cosmopolitan  city. 
Hundreds  of  French  aviators,  automobilists,  engineers 
and  Red  Cross  Units,  Russian,  British,  Greek  and 
Roumanian  doctors  and  nurses,  and  English  sailors  of 
the  naval  gun  batteries  were  everywhere  en  cinifcnce. 
The  blue  and  crimson  uniforms  of  the  Royal  Guard 
showed  that  King  Peter  was  in  Prisrend.  As  the 
members  of  the  Government,  the  Crown  Prince  Com- 
mander-in-Chief and  the  Headquarters  Staff  had  also 
arrived,  all  that  was  left  of  the  elements  of  Govern- 
ment in  Serbia  was  assembled  within  the  walls  of  the 
ancient  Albanian  citv. 


138       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

The  one  question  on  everybody's  lips  was  "would 
it  be  an  unconditional  surrender?"  in  which  case  we 
would  all  find  ourselves  German  prisoners  forty-eight 
hours  later,  or  would  the  King,  the  Government  and 
the  army  leave  Serbian  territory  and  take  refuge  in 
Albania?  The  final  councils  did  not  last  long.  On 
November  24th  the  supreme  resolution  was  taken,  the 
King,  army  and  Government  would  refuse  to  treat 
with  the  enemy  and  would  leave  for  Albania. 

To  this  resolution  several  factors  contributed.  One 
of  the  chief  was  Serbia's  loyalty  to  her  Allies.  She 
had  undertaken  not  to  sign  a  separate  peace  and  she 
held  her  word  to  the  last.  She  might  be  defeated,  she 
was  not  conquered.  Another  factor  was  the  dynastic 
one.  It  was  certain  that  one  of  the  first  conditions  of 
peace  which  Germany,  and  especially  Austria,  would 
have  exacted  would  have  been  the  abdication  of  King 
Peter.  It  was  equally  certain  that  M.  Pashitch  and 
the  other  members  of  the  Government  would  have 
been  arrested  and  probably  exiled  for  life  from  Serbia. 
There  was  therefore  nothing  to  be  gained  by  sur- 
render and  as  long  as  King  Peter,  his  Government  and 
his  army  escaped  the  clutches  of  their  enemies,  Serbia 
was  unconquered.  The  treasury  had  long  been  placed 
in  safety  abroad,  so  that  there  was  no  want  of  funds 
to  meet  the  expenses  of  the  Government  and  army  in 
exile. 

Of  course  no  one  had  any  illusions  as  to  the  diffi- 
culties of  the  task  the  Government  had  undertaken. 
It  meant  that  the  army  must  abandon  its  artillery 
(excepting  mountain  guns),  its  transport  wagons,  its 


The  Serbian  Offensive  139 

motor-cars,  its  pontoon  trains,  its  artillery  ammuni-, 
tion.  in  a  word  everything  that  could  not  be  carried 
on  the  back  of  pack  animals  would  have  to  be  left 
behind.  It  was  further  impossible  to  transport  the 
army  with  any  system  or  order;  for  that  there  was 
no  time.  Each  unit,  company,  battalion  or  regiment, 
squadron  or  battery  was  given  its  place  of  rendezvous 
in  Albania  and  told  to  get  there  as  best  it  could.  There 
were  three  routes,  one  to  Scutaria,  through  Monte- 
negro, zia  Ipek  and  Andreyevitza ;  another  via  Lioum- 
Koula,  Dibra  and  El-Bassan  to  Durazzo ;  and  a  third, 
that  taken  by  the  King,  the  Government  and  the  Head- 
quarters Staff,  via  Lioum-Koula,  Spas  and  Puka  to 
Scutaria. 

The  roads  (except  the  Dibra-El  Bassan  route)  are 
mere  sheep  tracks  over  the  mountains.  Vehicular 
traffic  in  any  shape  or  form  is  absolutely  unknown. 
Every  ounce  of  food  would  have  to  be  carried  on 
pack  animals,  or  in  the  men's  knapsacks.  The  same 
held  good  for  forage.  And  this  last  effort  was 
demanded  from  an  army  which  had  already  reached 
the  limit  of  human  endurance,  which  was  in  a  state 
of  physical  exhaustion,  and  in  many  instances  without 
food  and  without  munitions.  It  was  under  such  con- 
ditions that  150,000  men,  all  that  was  left  of  the 
300.000  of  three  months  before,  began  their  march 
across  the  endless  ranges  of  snow-capped  mountains. 

Personally  I  received  good  news  in  Prisrend.  Our 
long-lost  wagon  had  been  found.  Our  man  Stanco, 
wisely  abandoning  the  attempt  to  find  us  among  the 
100,000  fugitives  crowding  Pristina,  had  set  out  for 


140       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

Prisrend,  which  he  had  reached  after  five  day's  march. 
The  horses,  however,  were  gone.  As  he  was  travelHng 
alone  he  had  no  one  to  mount  guard  at  night,  and  as 
every  Albanian  is  a  born  horse  thief,  their  fate  was 
sealed.  On  reaching  Prisrend  he  had  reported  his 
arrival  at  the  Headquarters  Staff,  leaving  word  where 
he  was  to  be  found.  The  loss  of  the  horses  was  of 
no  great  importance.  They  could  never  have  faced 
the  crossing  of  the  mountains  with  a  hundred  kilos  of 
baggage  on  their  backs.  For  that  work  one  requires 
sure-footed,  sturdy  mountain  ponies. 

When  I  reached  Headquarters  the  first  thing  I 
noticed  was  a  score  of  soldiers  burning  the  archives, 
staff  maps,  etc.,  a  clear  proof  that  the  journey  to 
Scutaria  was  resolved  on.  During  lunch  I  learned  the 
latest  preparations  that  had  been  made.  M.  Pashitch 
and  the  members  of  the  Government  were  leaving  for 
Scutaria  with  a  military  escort  the  following  day. 
The  next  day  the  King  and  the  Royal  Household  with 
the  Royal  Guard  would  start,  and  on  the  third  day 
Field-Marshal  Putnik  and  the  Headquarters  Staff 
would  leave  for  Scutaria.  As  I  and  my  French  col- 
league of  the  Petit  Parisien  were  attached  to  the  Head- 
quarters, Colonel  Mitrovitch  told  me  he  had  reserved 
a  pack-horse  for  our  baggage.  All  that  was  left  of 
bread  and  biscuits  would  also  be  distributed  the  night 
before  the  march  started. 

It  was  a  curious  sensation  to  look  round  the  large 
mess  room,  with  its  hundreds  of  brilliant  uniforms 
worn  by  the  men  who  had  fought  five  victorious  cam- 
paigns, and  to  think  that  in  forty-eight  hours'  time 


The  Serbian  Offensive  141 

they  would  be  in  exile,  camping  among  the  snows  of 
the  Albanian  mountains,  with  the  splendid  armies  they 
had  commanded  shrunk  to  150,000  men,  deprived  of 
everything  that  goes  to  make  an  army  in  the  field. 
Grief  and  bitterness  were  written  on  many  a  face, 
many  would  have  preferred  to  be  in  the  fighting-line 
and  to  have  died  at  the  head  of  their  men,  rather 
than  have  seen  this  tragic  hour. 

One  thing  is  certain,  no  reproach  could  be  cast  upon 
the  Serbian  Army;  it  had  done  its  duty,  and  more 
than  its  duty.  It  had  fought  with  desperate  courage 
against  overwhelming  odds,  and  if  the  armed  strength 
of  Serbia  was  crushed,  her  honour  at  least  was  intact. 


CHAPTER  XI 


THE  LAST  DAYS  IN  SERBIA 


WHEN  I  arrived  at  the  Headquarters  mess  on 
Thursday,  November  23rd,  the  day  of  my 
arrival  in  Prisrend,  I  received  some  details  of  the 
latest  movements  of  the  enemy.  The  Serbian  Head- 
quarters Staff  had  arrived  at  Prisrend  on  November 
17th.  Two  days  later  it  received  news  that  the  Austro- 
German  Army  under  General  von  Gallwitz  had  occu- 
pied Rashka  and  Novi  Bazaar. 

On  November  22nd  this  force  entered  Mitrovitza, 
and  pushing  forward,  on  November  25th  rejoined  the 
army  of  Field-Marshal  von  Mackensen  at  Pristina. 
The  whole  of  the  Austro-German  forces  on  the 
Balkans  were  therefore  massed  in  that  town.  The 
same  day  the  Bulgarians,  occupying  Lipljan  with  two 
divisions,  joined  hands  with  their  Austro-German 
Allies.  Advancing  toward  Prisrend,  the  whole  Austro- 
Germano-Bulgarian  Army  spread  out  its  forces  in  a 
semicircle,  surrounding  all  that  was  left  of  the  Serbian 
Army  and  bringing  it  with  its  back  to  the  frontier  of 
Albania. 

On  the  day  of  my  arrival  I  paid  a  visit  to  the 
citadel,  perched  on  the  hill  on  the  slopes  of  which 
Prisrend   is  built.     Here  are  the   last   traces   of   the 

142 


The  Last  Days  in  Serbia        143 

stronghold  erected  by  the  Emperor  Stephen  Doushan, 
the  Serbian  Charlemagne.  At  my  feet  flowed  the 
Bistritza,  rushing  in  a  torrent  down  through  the  town. 
To  the  east,  at  the  extremity  of  a  gorge,  between 
towering  mountains,  I  could  see  the  snow-covered 
peaks  of  the  Shar  range,  which  formed  a  lofty  barrier 
between  us  and  the  Bulgarians  at  Tetovo.  To  the  left 
appeared  the  city  of  Prisrend,  a  vast  agglomeration 
of  Turkish  and  /Mbanian  houses  from  which  emerged 
the  graceful  minarets  of  its  fifty  mosques.  Among 
these  one  could  distinguish  the  belfry  of  the  single 
Greek  Orthodox  Church.  In  an  obscure  corner  was 
hidden  a  small  Catholic  chapel,  the  priest  of  which  is 
subventioned  by  the  Austrian  Government. 

In  the  afternoon  arrived  the  news  that  the  route 
from  Dibra  to  Monastir  had  been  cut,  as  the  Bul- 
garians were  at  Prilep  and  advancing  on  Monastir. 
This  extinguished  the  last  hope  of  some  part  of  the 
Serbian  Army  reaching  that  town  to  take  train 
through  Greece  to  Salonica.  It  was  the  debacle  all 
along  the  line. 

After  dinner  in  the  evening  a  Major  of  the  "Section 
des  operations"  of  the  Headquarters  Staff  gave  me  a 
technical  resume  of  the  operations  on  the  various 
fronts  for  the  past  month. 

"On  the  28th  of  October,"  he  said,  "the  Serbian 
Army  had  a  small  force  in  the  south  on  the  line 
Tetovo-Gostivar-Kitchevo  and  a  detachment  on  the 
Babuna  mountain.  There  was  also  a  body  of  troops 
on  the  line  Ferizovitch-Giljane. 

"In  Old  Serbia  the  forces  were  grouped  as  follows: 


144       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

There  was  an  army  corps  on  the  left  bank  of  the  West- 
ern Morava  on  the  front  Gorny-Milanovatz-Kritsch. 
There  was  another  army  corps  on  the  right  bank  of  the 
Great  Morava  in  the  neighbourhood  of  Chupria  and 
Parachin.  A  third  army  corps  occupied  the  environs 
of  Plotch  near  Nish. 

"The  principal  idea  of  the  Headquarters  Staff  at 
this  time  was  to  concentrate  all  the  available  troops  in 
the  country  between  the  Western  Morava  and  the 
Southern  Morava,  and  to  reinforce  the  troops  of  the 
front  Giljane-Ferizovitch,  and  there  await  the  arrival 
of  the  French  troops. 

"On  November  2nd  the  troops  on  the  left  bank  of 
the  Western  Morava  had  to  give  way  before  the  supe- 
rior force  of  the  Germans,  and  retire  to  the  right  bank. 
The  troops  which  were  in  the  environs  of  Chupria  and 
Parachin  were  in  consequence  forced  to  fall  back  to- 
ward the  mountain  of  Jastrebatz,  while  the  troops  in 
the  environs  of  Nish  had  to  abandon  their  position  and 
fall  back  on  Lescovatz.  The  position  of  this  force  to- 
wards November  7th  became  very  critical,  as  one  of  its 
divisions  had  suffered  a  severe  check  in  the  neighbour- 
hood of  Lescovatz.  The  line  of  retreat  of  this  army 
corps,  Lipljan-Medvedje,  was  threatened.  This  was 
the  principal  reason  for  hastening  the  retreat  of  all  the 
army  corps,  while  the  troops  which  held  on  the  right 
bank  of  the  Western  Morava  were  forced  to  retire  to- 
wards Rashka. 

"The  troops  which  had  retired  to  the  neighbourhood 
of  Mount  Jastrebatz  were  ordered  to  retire  toward 
Kurshoumlia,  Prepolatz  and  Pristina.     Their  instruc- 


The  Last  Days  in  Serbia        145 

tions  were  to  fall  back  slowly,  defending  every  possible 
position  as  long  as  possible.  Other  smaller  detach- 
ments fell  back  on  Jankova  Klissiira. 

"Meanwhile  the  army  corps  which  had  received  a 
check  near  Lescovatz  had  somewhat  improved  its  posi- 
tion. It  had  been  reinforced  and  made  a  successful  at- 
tack on  the  Bulgarians  which  allowed  it  to  utilize  the 
line  of  retreat  via  Lipljan-Medvedje,  which  at  one 
time  was  seriously  menaced.  It  was  therefore  in  a 
position  to  fall  back  towards  Pristina. 

"It  was  in  consequence  possible  to  save  the  Serbian 
armies,  and  this  in  spite  of  the  fact  that  the  retreat  had 
to  be  carried  out  through  a  country  possessing  few 
roads.  What  rendered  the  position  extremely  difficult 
was  the  fact  that  the  pressure  from  the  German  armies 
in  the  north  was  combined  with  a  Bulgarian  offensive 
coming  from  the  south,  and  was  deployed  on  a  line 
running  from  Vranje  to  Lescovatz. 

"The  Serbian  Army  at  Rashka  then  received  orders 
to  occupy  the  line  Rashka-Novi  Bazaar  to  bar  the  route 
to  Mitrovitza.  All  the  remaining  Serbian  armies  were 
moved  to  the  Plain  of  Kossovo,  and  in  a  position  to  re- 
inforce the  troops  in  Macedonia  and  undertake  a  gen- 
eral offensive.  The  troops  in  Macedonia  received  or- 
ders if  possible  to  recapture  Giljane  and  prevent  the 
Bulgarians  debouching  from  the  Katchanik. 

"In  the  battle  near  the  Katchanik  the  Serbs  succeeded 
in  recapturing  the  very  important  position  of  Jegovatz ; 
but  the  task  before  them  was  beyond  the  strength  of 
troops  exhausted  by  weeks  of  fatigue  and  hardships. 
The  forcing  of  the  strongly-entrenched  Bulgarian  lines 


146       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

by  an  army  whose  rear  was  threatened  by  the  two  Ger- 
man and  the  Bulgarian  Armies  was  beyond  its  strength, 
and  it  had  to  fall  back  on  Prisrend." 

From  November  24th  to  26th  we  were  occupied  in 
making  preparation  for  our  departure.  The  Head- 
quarters Staff,  headed  by  Field-Marshal  Putnik,  num- 
bered, with  its  escort,  over  300  persons,  with  more 
than  400  riding  and  baggage  horses.  The  aged 
Voivode  was,  as  I  have  already  said,  a  martyr  to 
asthma  and  unable  to  mount  on  horseback  or  face  the 
bitter  cold  of  the  Albanian  mountains.  It  is,  however, 
utterly  impossible  to  traverse  the  mountain  roads  in  a 
wheeled  vehicle  of  any  sort.  In  consequence,  it  was 
resolved  to  construct  a  sort  of  sedan  chair  in  which  the 
veteran  leader  could  be  carried  across  the  mountains 
on  the  shoulders  of  Serbian  soldiers. 

The  French  in  Prisrend,  consisting  of  the  Aviation 
and  other  units,  numbering  altogether  nearly  250  offi- 
cers and  men,  resolved  to  cross  the  mountains  by  the 
same  route  as  the  Headquarters  Staff,  starting  the  day 
before  it,  immediately  behind  the  King  and  the  Royal 
Household.  This  detachment  was  under  the  command 
of  Colonel  Fournier,  the  French  military  attache,  hav- 
ing as  his  lieutenant  Major  Vitrat,  the  head  of  the 
French  Aviation  Section.  This  section  had  rendered 
immense  services  to  the  Serbian  Army  throughout  the 
whole  retreat.  Major  Vitrat  is  an  officer  who  would 
do  credit  to  any  army.  I  have  rarely  met  a  man  of 
more  decision  of  character,  and  certainly  none  of 
greater  courage.     His  example  inspired  the  Aviation 


The  Last  Days  in  Serbia        147 

Corps  from  its  pilots  to  the  last  of  its  transport 
chaufifeurs. 

The  French  detachment  was  composed  of  three  sail- 
ors from  the  naval  gun  battery  of  Belgrade,  94  auto- 
mobile mechanicians,  125  officers  and  men  of  the  Avia- 
tion Section,  and  5  wireless  operators.  The  personnel 
was  utilized  according  to  its  aptitude.  A  commission 
for  the  purchase  of  the  necessary  pack  animals  was 
formed  of  two  observing  officers  of  the  xA.viation  Sec- 
tion, one  a  captain  of  hussars  and  the  other  a  captain  of 
artillery.  The  officers  brought  together  what  money 
they  still  possessed  for  the  purchase  of  the  provisions 
necessary  for  the  journey,  a  matter  of  18,000  francs. 

This  proved  the  most  difficult  part  of  the  organiza- 
tion, as  food  and  fodder  were  becoming  rare.  A  cer- 
tain amount  of  corn  for  the  70  pack  horses  of  the  ex- 
pedition was  found  at  a  price  of  one  franc  the  "oka" 
(the  Turkish  "oka"  is  about  three  English  pounds), 
and  ten  sheep  which  accompanied  the  column  and  were 
killed  and  eaten  as  occasion  rec|uired. 

The  next  difficulty  was  the  cjuestion  of  transport  of 
half  a  dozen  sick  men  in  the  detachment.  Horses  for 
their  transport  could  not  be  found,  and  it  was  out  of 
the  question  that  they  could  be  carried  on  stretchers  by 
their  comrades.  Colonel  Fournier  solved  the  difficulty 
by  ordering  their  transport  by  aeroplane.  The  Section 
still  possessed  six  machines  capable  of  flying,  in  spite 
of  the  fact  that  for  two  and  a  half  months  they  had 
been  exposed  night  and  day  without  shelter  to  wind, 
rain  and  snow.  On  Thursday,  November  25th,  the  six 
aeroplanes  started  offi  across  the  mountains  on  their 


148       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

flight  to  Scutari.  This  was  the  first  time  in  mihtary 
annals  that  the  aeroplane  had  been  pressed  into  the 
ambulance  service.  But  the  innovation  was  a  most  suc- 
cessful one,  the  aeroplanes  arriving  in  Scutari  in  less 
than  half  the  number  of  hours  that  it  took  the  rest  of 
the  detachment  days  in  its  march  across  the  snow-clad 
hills. 

It  was,  indeed,  with  a  certain  envy  that  we  watched 
the  start  of  these  ambulance-aeroplanes  when  we  re- 
membered the  difficult  task  that  lay  before  us  before 
we  could  rejoin  them  in  Scutari.  Du  Bochet  and  I  ar- 
ranged to  travel  with  the  French  column,  and  handed 
to  Major  Vitrat  the  list  of  provisions  which  we  could 
contribute  to  the  common  stock.  The  first  etape,  that 
from  Prisrend  to  Lioum-Koula,  is  along  a  fairly  good 
road.  It  was  resolved  to  send  on  the  pack  animals  the 
day  before  and  to  cover  the  thirty  kilometres  to  Lioum- 
Koula,  which  is  the  last  village  on  Serbian  territory,  in 
the  automobiles  of  the  Aviation  Corps.  As  the  road 
from  this  point  onward  is  a  mere  sheep  track  across 
the  mountains,  utterly  impracticable  for  wheeled 
vehicles,  the  automobiles  would  there  be  destroyed  in 
order  to  prevent  their  falling  into  the  hands  of  the 
enemy. 


CHAPTER  XII 

THE  MARCH  ACROSS  THE  MOUNTAINS  OF  ALBANIA 

IT  was  seven  in  the  morning  of  Friday,  November 
26th,  when  we  started  on  our  march  across  the 
mountains  of  Scutari.  Despite  the  depressing  circum- 
stances, the  aviation  detachment  was  in  high  spirits  at 
the  prospect  of  returning  to  France  after  a  year  of 
hardship  in  Serbian  campaigning.  At  Lioum-Koula 
we  were  to  destroy  the  automobiles,  preHminary  to 
starting  on  our  120  mile  tramp.  We  had,  however,  to 
begin  the  ceremony  prematurely,  as  six  miles  from  the 
start  one  of  the  motors  gave  out.  As  there  was  neither 
time  nor  inclination  to  repair  it,  the  vehicle,  a  ten-ton 
motor  lorry,  was  run  by  hand  into  a  field  alongside  the 
road,  flooded  with  petrol  and  set  on  fire.  An  instant 
later  it  was  blazing  merrily  while  the  irrepressible 
younger  spirits  of  the  detachment  executed  a  war 
dance  around  it,  solemnly  chanting  Chopin's  "Funeral 
March." 

But  it  was  at  Lioum-Koula  that  we  had  the  grand 
feu  d' artifice.  Near  a  bridge  across  the  Drin  the  right 
bank  of  the  river  drops  precipitously  nearly  150  feet. 
One  after  another  the  huge  motors  were  drenched  with 
petrol  and  set  on  fire.  The  chauffeurs  steered  straight 
for  the  precipice,  jumping  clear  as  the  cars  shot  over. 

149 


150       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

The  immense  lorries  rolled,  crashing  to  the  bottom, 
where  they  formed  a  blazing  pile. 

Twelve  hours  later  I  saw  a  crowd  of  500  wretched 
Austrian  prisoners  gathered  around  the  ruins.  They 
had  crawled  down  to  warm  themselves,  and  to  roast 
chunks  of  meat  cut  from  dead  horses,  at  a  blaze  that 
had  cost  the  French  Republic  a  c|uarter  of  a  million 
francs.  The  rest  of  the  landscape  was  blotted  out  by 
the  whirling  blizzard  through  which  the  fiery  tongues 
of  flame  were  darting.  Every  now  and  then  the  explo- 
sion of  a  benzine  tank  would  scatter  the  Austrians, 
but  the  temptation  of  warmth  proved  too  much  for 
them,  and  they  soon  returned. 

Five  minutes  after  the  last  car  was  over  the  preci- 
pice. Major  Vitrat  formed  up  his  men,  told  off  his  ad- 
vance and  rearguards,  gave  the  word  "en  avant, 
marche,"  and  the  column  swung  off  through  the  driv- 
ing snow  on  the  first  etape  of  its  long  march.  We  had 
intended  accompanying^  it  to  Scutari,  but  found  that 
the  bullock  wagon  with  our  baggage  and  our  pack 
horse,  which  had  left  Prisrend  the  previous  day,  had 
failed  to  arrive.  It  did  not  put  in  its  appearance  until 
five  o'clock  in  the  evening,  and  as  a  violent  snowstorm 
was  then  raging,  I  did  not  care  to  tackle  the  mountain 
ascent  in  the  dark  to  try  to  find  the  French  bivouac. 
There  was,  therefore,  nothing  for  us  to  do  but  to  join 
the  Headquarters  Staff. 

The  event  of  the  day  was  the  arrival  of  the  Voivode 
Putnik.  The  veteran  Field-Marshal  had  been  a  martyr 
to  asthma  for  years  past.  He  practically  had  not  left 
his  room  for  two  years.     This  was  always  kept  at  a 


Across  the  Mountains  of  Albania    151 

temperature  of  86  degrees  Fahrenheit.  A  seven  days' 
mountain  journey  in  a  sedan-chair,  carried  by  four  sol- 
diers, must  have  been  a  terrible  experience  for  him. 
But  the  capture  of  their  beloved  Voivode  by  the  Ger- 
mans would  have  been  regarded  by  the  Serbians  as  a 
national  disaster. 

The  next  day  it  was  still  snowing,  and  the  start  for 
Scutari  was  delayed  another  twenty-four  hours.  As 
two  years  before,  during  the  Albanian  campaign,  the 
Serbians  had  demolished  all  the  houses  in  Lioum- 
Koula  except  four,  accommodation  was  limited.  I 
found  lodgings  in  a  huge  ammunition  tent.  The 
gendarme  in  charge  objected  to  my  smoking  cigarettes, 
which  he  said  was  strictly  forbidden  by  the  regulations, 
but  he  said  nothing  about  the  score  of  guttering  candles 
burning  on  cartridge-boxes,  or  the  spirit-lamp  on  a  box 
labelled  "shells,"  over  which  the  wife  of  the  colonel 
was  preparing  tea.  When  I  drew  his  attention  to  this 
he  declared  the  regulations  were  silent  on  the  subject 
of  candles  and  spirit-lamps,  but  distinctly  mentioned 
cigarettes. 

All  day  and  night  the  troops  bound  for  El-Bassan 
poured  through  Lioum-Koula.  As  we  had  nothing  to 
do,  I  went  out  for  a  walk  about  five  miles  along  the 
road.  Every  five  hundred  yards  or  so  I  came  on  dead 
bodies  of  men  who  had  succumbed  to  cold  or  ex- 
haustion. Coming  back  I  encountered  Captain  Piagge, 
the  English  officer  in  Serbian  service  whom  I  had  met 
at  the  Pristina  railway  station,  when  he  was  leaving  to 
take  part  in  the  last  desperate  effort  to  advance  on 
Uskub.     When  1  had  last  seen  him  his  machine  gun 


152       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

section  numbered  about  eighty- four  men.  At  Lioum- 
Koula  it  had  dwindled  to  twenty-six.  He  had  all  his 
guns  intact,  however,  and  delivered  them,  as  I  after- 
wards heard,  safely  at  El-Bassan.  The  sufferings  of 
the  Serbians  in  the  Katchanik  Mountains  had,  he  told 
me,  been  terrible.  His  section,  after  passing  the  whole 
day  in  the  blizzard  at  Pristina  station,  had,  at  mid- 
night, with  the  temperature  far  below  zero,  been  em- 
barked on  open  trucks  for  its  six  hours'  journey  to 
the  fighting-line.  The  men  had  nothing  to  eat  except 
some  maize  bread  and  a  few  raw  cabbages.  As  soon 
as  they  left  the  train  they  had  started  on  their  march 
into  the  mountains.  At  first  they  were  successful, 
driving  the  Bulgarians  from  one  mountain  ridge  after 
another.  But  fatigue  and  privations  soon  told  their 
tale,  and  in  forty-eight  hours  his  men  had  fought 
themselves  to  a  standstill  and  nothing  was  left  but  re- 
treat on  Prisrend. 

Probably  not  since  the  crossing  of  the  Alps  by 
Napoleon  had  such  a  military  expedition  been  under- 
taken as  the  traversing  of  the  Albanian  mountains  by 
the  Headquarters  Staff  and  the  remains  of  the  Serbian 
Army.  But  Napoleon  made  his  march  after  long  and 
careful  preparation,  while  the  unfortunate  Serbs  began 
theirs  when  their  army  was  in  the  last  stages  of  desti- 
tution, without  food,  with  uniforms  in  rags,  and  with 
utterly  inadequate  means  of  transport. 

The  sight  presented  by  Lioum-Koula  on  the  eve  of 
departure  was  unique.  On  the  mountain  side  for  miles 
nothing  could  be  seen  but  endless  fires.  They  were 
made  by  the  burning  of  the  thousands  of  ox- wagons, 


Across  the  Mountains  of  Albania    153 

which  were  unable  to  go  further,  as  the  road  for 
vehicles  ceases  at  Lioum-Koula.  Fortunately  the  snow- 
storm had  ended  and  had  been  followed  by  brilliant 
sunshine. 

Next  morning  at  nine  o'clock  the  Headquarters  Staff 
set  out.  It  included  300  persons  and  400  pack  animals. 
The  road  wound  along  the  banks  of  the  Drin,  which 
had  to  be  crossed  twice  by  means  of  picturesque  old 
single-span  Turkish  bridges,  since  destroyed  to  impede 
the  Bulgarian  advance. 

The  first  mistake  made  was  that  of  transporting  the 
sedan-chair  of  Field-Marshal  Putnik  at  the  head  of  the 
procession.  Every  time  it  halted  to  change  bearers, 
which  was  every  fifteen  minutes,  the  whole  two-mile- 
long  procession,  following  in  single  file,  had  to  stop 
also.  As  a  result,  instead  of  reaching  Spas  before  sun- 
down, we  only  reached  a  village  at  the  base  of  the 
mountain  after  darkness  had  fallen. 

Here  a  long  council  was  held  as  to  whether  we  should 
bivouac  in  the  village  or  undertake  the  mountain  climb 
in  the  dark.  After  a  discussion  lasting  three-quarters 
of  an  hour,  during  which  the  mass  of  men  and  animals 
stood  shivering  in  the  freezing  cold,  the  latter  course 
was  decided  upon.  It  was  one  of  the  most  extraor- 
dinary adventures  ever  undertaken.  A  narrow  path 
about  four  feet  wide,  covered  with  ice  and  snow,  winos 
corkscrew  fashion  up  the  face  of  the  cliff.  On  one 
hand  is  a  rocky  wall  and  on  the  other  a  sheer  drop  into 
the  Drin. 

This  road  winds  and  twists  at  all  sorts  of  angles,  and 
it  was  up  this  that  we  started  in  the  black  darkness, 


154       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

with  the  sedan-chair  of  General  Putnik  still  heading 
the  procession.  Every  time  it  reached  a  corner  it  was 
a  matter  of  endless  difficulty  to  manoeuvre  it  around. 

On  one  occasion  we  stood  for  thirty-five  minutes  in 
an  icy  wind,  listening  to  the  roar  of  the  Drin,  invisible 
in  the  black  gulf  500  feet  below.  Horses  slipped  and 
fell  at  every  instant,  and  every  now  and  then  one  would 
go  crashing  into  the  abyss.  It  was  a  miracle  that  no 
human  lives  were  lost. 

It  was  ten  o'clock  when,  tired,  hungry  and  half 
frozen,  we  reached  bivouac  at  Spas.  Here  we  found 
that,  though  dinner  had  been  ready  since  four  o'clock 
in  the  afternoon,  it  could  not  be  served  because  all  the 
plates  and  spoons  were  on  the  pack  animals,  which  had 
remained  in  the  village  below.  Neither  had  the  tents 
arrived,  and  as  Spas  contains  only  five  or  six  peasant 
houses,  accommodation  was  at  a  premium.  Colonel 
Mitrovitch,  head  of  the  mess,  told  us  he  had  reserved 
a  room  for  us  in  a  farmhouse  a  quarter  oi  a  mile  away. 

The  house  really  was  twO'  hours  distant,  over  fields 
feet  deep  in  snow.  When  we  got  there  at  midnight  we 
discovered  that  there  were  already  nearly  a  score  of 
occupants ;  but  at  least  we  were  able  to  sleep  in  some 
straw  near  the  fireside,  instead  of  in  the  snow  outside. 

Next  morning  we  set  out  at  six  so  as  to  get  ahead  of 
the  main  body  of  the  Headquarters  Staff.  The  day 
was  magnificent  and  we  slowly  climbed  foot  by  foot  to 
the  cloud-capped  summits  of  the  mountains.  Up  and 
up  we  went,  thousands  and  thousands  of  feet.  Every 
few  hundred  yards  we  came  on  bodies  of  men  frozen 
or  starved  to  death.    At  one  point  there  were  four  in  a 


Across  the  Mountains  of  Albania    155 

heap.  They  were  convicts  from  Prisrend  penitentiary, 
who  had  been  sent  in  chains  across  the  mountains. 
They  had  been  shot  either  for  insubordination  or  be- 
cause they  were  unable  to  proceed.  Two  other  nearly 
naked  bodies  were  evidently  those  of  Serbian  soldiers 
murdered  by  Albanians, 

By  midday  we  reached  the  summit  of  the  mountain, 
a  wind-swept  plateau  several  thousand  feet  above  the 
level  of  the  sea.  For  fifty  miles  extended  range  upon 
range  of  snow-clad  mountains,  the  crests  of  which  had 
never  been  trodden  by  the  foot  of  man.  Nothing  could 
be  seen  but  an  endless  series  of  peaks,  glittering  like 
diamonds  in  the  brilliant  sunshine.  The  scene  was  one 
of  undescribable  grandeur  and  desolation. 

After  traversing  the  plateau  we  began  the  descent, 
skirting  the  edge  of  precipices  of  enormous  height  and 
traversing  narrow  gorges  running  between  towering 
walls  of  black  basalt.  Every  few  hundred  yards  we 
would  come  on  corpses  of  Serbian  soldiers,  sometimes 
singly,  sometimes  in  groups.  One  man  had  evidently 
gone  to  sleep  beside  a  wretched  fire  he  had  been  able 
to  light.  The  heat  of  it  had  melted  the  snow,  and  the 
water  had  flowed  over  his  feet.  In  the  night  during 
his  sleep  this  had  frozen  and  his  feet  were  imprisoned 
in  a  solid  block  of  ice.  When  I  reached  him  he  was 
still  breathing.  From  time  to  time  he  moved  feebly  as 
if  trying  to  free  his  feet  from  their  icy  covering.  We 
were  powerless  to  aid  him,  he  was  so  far  gone  that 
nothing  could  have  saved  him.  The  only  kindness  one 
could  have  done  him  would  have  been  to  end  his  suf- 
ferings with   a   revolver  bullet.      But   human  life   is 


156       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

sacred,  and  so  there  was  nothing  to  do  but  pass  on  and 
leave  him  to  breathe  his  last  in  these  eternal  solitudes. 

On  this  part  of  the  journey  it  was  a  matter  of  life 
and  death  to  reach  the  end  of, the  ctape  and  find  some 
shelter.  If  we  had  been  surprised  by  darkness  in  the 
desolation  of  these  wind-swept  mountain  gorges,  where 
the  narrow  pathway  ran  alongside  a  fathomless  abyss, 
our  fate  was  sealed.  In  addition  to  the  forces  of  na- 
ture we  had  also  to  reckon  with  the  wild  and  lawless 
Albanian  population.  The  hardy  mountaineers  who 
live  among  these  fastnesses  have  many  qualities,  but 
the  life  of  feud  and  strife  of  their  savage  clans  does 
not  make  for  the  development  of  respect  for  human 
life. 

We  spent  the  night  in  an  Albanian  peasant's  hut  in 
the  village  of  Fleti,  a  collection  of  half  a  score  of 
houses,  surrounded,  like  most  Albanian  villages,  by  a 
dry  stone  wall.  The  Albanian  population  refused  to 
accept  our  Serbian  silver  money,  and  we  were  forced 
reluctantly  to  bring  out  our  small  store  of  ten  and 
twenty  franc  gold  pieces.  In  ordinary  times  one  of 
these  would  represent  a  small  fortune  to  the  Albanian 
mountaineers,  but  they  were  evidently  resolved  to  ex- 
ploit the  Serbian  retreat  commercially  to  the  best  of 
their  ability. 

We  started  next  morning  at  dawn.  Soon  after  mid- 
day we  overtook  King  Peter  and  his  Staff.  Despite 
his  seventy-six  years  he  marched  on  foot  with  a  vigour 
a  younger  man  might  have  envied.  During  all  the  four 
hours  we  marched  with  the  Royal  Staff  His  Majesty 
never  once  mounted  his  horse,  which  a  soldier  was  lead- 


Across  the  Mountains  of  Albania    157 

ing  behind  him.  When  we  stopped  for  the  night  at  the 
village  Bredeti  the  King  had  a  march  of  ten  hours  to 
his  credit. 

It  was  at  this  point  that  we  came  across  the  first 
gendarmes  of  Essad  Pasha,  the  ruler  of  Albania,  who 
eighteen  months  before  had  driven  the  Prince  von 
Wied,  the  marionette  King  nominated  by  the  Great 
Powers  at  the  instigation  of  Germany  and  Austria, 
from  his  throne.  These  gendarmes  had  been  sent  out 
by  their  iron-handed  master  to  protect  the  journey  of 
King  Peter  and  his  Staff.  They  were  a  picturesque 
lot,  many  of  them  going  barefooted  in  the  snow,  but 
there  was  no  doubt  of  the  first  class  quality  of  their 
rifles  and  revolvers.  For  the  most  part  they  wore 
Serbian  unifonns — that  is  when  they  wore  any  uni- 
form at  all — of  which  the  Nish  Government  had  some 
months  before  made  Essad  Pasha  a  present  of  several 
thousand. 

The  attitude  of  the  Albanian  population  towards 
the  Serbs  could  not  be  described  as  friendly,  but  at  the 
same  time  they  gave  no  outward  signs  of  hostility. 
They  rarely  saluted  the  Serbian  officers  and  showed  no 
desire  whatever  to  offer  hospitality.  In  the  case  of  the 
Members  of  the  Serbian  Government,  the  King  and  his 
suite  and  the  Headquarters  Staff,  Essad  Pasha  had 
requisitioned  accommodation  in  the  rare  Albanian  vil- 
lages, but  anyone  not  belonging  to  one  of  these  units 
had  every  chance  of  faring  badly.  All  they  had  to  de- 
pend on  were  the  "bans"  or  wayside  caravanserai. 

These  huge,  barn-like  structures  consist  of  nothing 
but  four  walls  with  a  shingle  roof,  the  latter  generally 


158       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

far  from  watertight.  Here  men  and  horses  are  quar- 
tered pell-mell.  Everybody  annexes  as  much  space  as 
he  can  and  lights  a  fire  for  warmth  and  cooking.  As 
the  "hans"  have  no  chimneys  and  the  smoke  is  left  to 
find  its  way  thorugh  the  open  doors  or  through  the 
roof,  the  condition  of  the  atmosphere  may  be  imagined. 

As  du  Bochet  and  I  had  pushed  ahead  of  the  Head- 
quarters Staff,  we  had  naturally  lost  the  advantage  of 
being  billeted  in  the  farmhouses  requisitioned  by  Es- 
sad's  gendarmes. 

On  arriving  at  Bredeti  we  had  therefore  to  claim  the 
hospitality  of  the  local  "han."  We  lit  our  fire  in  the 
square  yard  or  two  of  space  we  had  been  able  tO'  com- 
mandeer. But  the  atmosphere  soon  proved  too  much 
for  us.  I  do  not  know  by  what  means  they  arrive  at  it, 
but  the  eyes  and  lungs  of  the  Serbian  soldiers  seem 
smoke-proof.  They  sit  and  converse  cheerfully  in  a 
smoke  cloud  through  which  you  cannot  see  a  yard.  As 
we  had  not  acquired  the  smoke  habit,  in  an  hour's  time 
we  were  driven  to  flight.  Blindness  and  suffocation 
seemed  the  penalty  of  a  more  prolonged  stay. 

We  therefore,  in  spite  of  the  snow  and  freezing  cold, 
fled  to  the  exterior.  Here,  as  some  protection  against 
the  weather,  we  determined  to  put  up  a  small  tent  we 
carried  with  our  baggage.  It  was  barely  three  feet 
high  and  open  at  one  end,  and  was,  in  consequence, 
but  an  indifferent  shelter  against  the  inclement  w^eather. 
However,  having  made  Stanco  build  a  blazing  fire 
near  the  open  end,  we  entered  it  and  went  to  sleep. 

Three  hours  later  we  awoke  to  find  the  wretched 
tent  in  a  blaze.    We  struggled  out  with  difficulty  and 


Across  the  Mountains  of  Albania    159 

managed  to  save  most  of  our  belongings  from  the 
flames.  But  the  tent  and  sleeping-rugs  were  gone, 
and  there  was  nothing  for  it  but  to  remain  seated 
round  the  camp  fire  till  the  advent  of  the  dawn  would 
allow  us  to  resume  our  weary  march. 

On  the  next  ctapc  a  new  experience  awaited  us. 
The  road  ran  for  miles  through  a  rocky  gorge,  through 
which  a  river  flowed.  The  route  lay  along  the  bed 
of  this,  and  the  only  means  to  travel  was  to  step  from 
one  stone  to  the  other.  There  is  nothing  so  nerve- 
racking  as  to  have  to  keep  one's  eyes  constantly  glued 
to  the  ground,  where  each  step  presents  a  new  prob- 
lem. Of  course,  every  now  and  then  one  of  the 
stones  would  turn  under  our  feet,  and  this  meant  a 
plunge  up  to  the  knees  in  the  icy  water  of  the  stream. 

As  far  as  the  eye  could  see  there  was  nothing  but 
this  rocky  bed,  winding  between  towering  basaltic 
cliffs.  The  task  of  transporting  a  thousand  men  and 
horses  under  such  conditions  was  almost  superhuman. 
If  the  Albanians  had  been  openly  hostile  not  one  man 
could  have  come  out  alive.  When  we  reached  the 
village  where  we  stopped  the  night  we  had  the  greatest 
difficulty  to  obtain  accommodation,  until  it  l)ecame 
known  we  were  not  Serbians.  Then  every  hospitality 
was  shown  us,  but  prices  were  enormous.  The  Al- 
banian, like  most  peasants,  is  grasping  and  fond  of 
money,  but  once  you  cross  his  threshold,  your  person 
and  property  are  sacred.  I  never  had  the  slightest 
fear  once  I  entered  an  Albanian  house. 

But  on  the  road  everything  is  possible.  The  tribes 
live  at  war  with  one  another  and  respect  for  human 


i6o       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

life  is  non-existent.  It  would  have  been  as  much  as 
our  lives  were  worth  to  travel  an  hour  after  darkness. 
But  during  the  daylight  an  armed  party  inspires  a 
certain  respect. 

The  men  physically  are  probably  the  handsomest 
in  Europe.  I  have  never  seen  anywhere  such  beauti- 
ful children  as  those  in  Albania,  and  their  parents  seem 
extremely  fond  of  them.  But  the  little  people  seem 
tO'  lead  very  serious  lives.  I  never  by  any  chance 
saw  half  a  dozen  playing  together.  They  sat  round 
in  silence  looking  at  us  with  wondering  eyes,  especially 
when  du  Bochet  and  I  spoke  French  together.  Not 
one  Albanian  in  a  hundred  knows  how  to  read  or 
write,  or  has.  ever  been  more  than  twenty  miles  from 
home.  And  it  was  through  such  a  country  the  Ser- 
bians had  to  transport  an  army,  and  that  with  the 
Germans  and  the  Bulgarians  in  close  pursuit. 

The  last  stages  of  the  march  were  probably  the 
hardest,  as  fodder  for  the  animals  and  food  for  the 
men  were  practically  unprocurable.  Money  difficul- 
ties also  increased  daily,  the  Albanians  refusing  to  ac- 
cept Serbian  silver  or  notes,  at  any  rate  of  exchange. 
They  would,  however,  give  food  and  lodgings  for 
articles  of  clothing,  shirts,  underwear,  socks  and  boots. 
On  the  last  stage  we  had,  therefore,  to  resort  to  the 
primitive  system  of  barter,  buying  a  night's  lodging 
with  a  shirt,  and  a  meal  with  a  pair  of  socks. 

In  the  mountains  just  before  Puka  I  discovered  the 
first  trace  of  wolves.  The  carcasses  of  dead  horses, 
which  were  now  numbered  by  scores,  showed  signs  of 
having  been  torn  by  them.     A  part  of  the  French 


Across  the  Mountains  of  Albania    i6i 

Aviation  Corps,  which  was  preceding  us,  got  lost  in 
the  snow  and  darkness  here,  and  had  to  spend  the 
night  in  the  open  without  protection.  A  dozen  were 
frostbitten,  but  no  fatal  casualties.  After  six  days 
we  finally  reached  the  Drin  again,  now  a  broad  and 
swiftly  flowing  stream. 

Thence  the  march  to  Scutari  may  be  summed  up 
in  the  word  mud — mud  of  the  deepest  and  most  tena- 
cious kind;  sometimes  it  only  reached  to  the  ankles, 
sometimes  to  the  knees,  but  it  was  always  there. 

The  twenty-five  miles  between  the  Drin  ferry  and 
Scutari  represents  physical  effort  of  no  mean  order. 
It  was  the  finish  for  scores  of  unfortunate  pack-horses. 
During  the  last  two  days  they  got  practically  no  food. 
On  these  days  we  found  dead  horses  every  hundred 
yards.  When  at  last,  at  four  in  the  afternoon,  we 
came  in  sight  of  the  towers  and  minarets  of  Scutari 
everyone  heaved  a  sigh  of  relief. 


CHAPTER  XIII 


AT   SCUTARI 


I  DO  not  suppose  since  the  Children  of  Israel 
crossed  the  desert  any  "promised  land"  was  ever 
looked  forward  to  with  such  yearning  as  that  felt  by 
the  remnants  of  the  Serbian  nation  for  the  first  sight 
of  Scutari.  During  the  final  etape,  the  "Tarabosh," 
the  fez-shaped  mountain  which  dominates  the  town 
and  lake,  was  for  them  what  the  "cloud  of  smoke  by 
day  and  the  pillar  of  fire  by  night"  were  for  the  fol- 
lowers of  Moses.  The  sight  of  the  score  of  minarets 
denoting  the  actual  position  of  the  town  created  the 
belief  that  in  an  hour  or  so  our  long  anabasis  would  be 
at  an  end.  But  this  was  more  or  less  an  optical 
illusion.  The  flatness  of  the  plain  makes  objects  seem 
nearer  than  they  really  are,  and  it  was  a  long  seven 
hours'  tramp  from  our  last  halting-place  till  we 
reached  the  banks  of  the  river  on  the  other  side  of 
which  were  the  outlying  suburbs  of  the  town. 

Our  final  day's  march  was  not  the  least  interesting 
one.  After  climbing  our  last  hill  and  winding  our  way 
down  a  tunnel-like  descent  covered  with  immense 
boulders,  we  debouched  on  the  plain  of  Scutari.  Here 
we  found  grassy  slopes  covered  with  clumps  of  spread- 
ing trees,  mostly  walnut  and  oaks.   The  miserable  huts 

162 


At  Scutari  163 

of  the  mountaineers  had  now  given  place  to  well-built 
stone  houses.  Instead  of  the  poorly-clad,  half-starved 
inhabitants  of  the  hills,  we  now  met  handsome,  well- 
clothed  men  and  tall  and  graceful  women.  We  were 
now  in  the  country  of  the  Myrdites. 

We  were  again  marching  along  the  banks  of  the 
Drin,  which  is,  at  this  point,  a  broad  and  imposing 
stream,  pouring  its  meandering  course  towards  the 
lake  of  Scutari.  As  far  as  the  eye  could  reach  there 
was  a  succession  of  large,  closely- wooded  islands, 
canals,  lakes  and  flooded  prairies,  from  which  rose 
hundreds  of  poplar  trees,  bordered  by  immense  banks 
of  sand,  over  which  we  could  see  Serbian  cavalry 
moving,  reduced  by  the  distance  to  little  black  dots. 

In  the  shops  in  the  villages  ,we  now  found  tobacco, 
excellent  cofifee  served  a  la  Turqiie,  and  little  bundles 
of  smoked  fish  from  the  lake.  The  slow  and  soft 
language  of  the  Turks  made  a  curious  contrast  to  the 
harsher  and  more  nasal  Albanian.  Montenegrin 
soldiers,  with  their  khaki-coloured  skull  caps  and  short 
cloaks  a  I'ltalienne,  had  now  replaced  the  truculent- 
looking  gendarmes  of  Essad  Pasha,  with  their  belts 
full  of  revolvers  and  their  general  look  of  brigands 
d'operette.  We  traversed  the  river  in  large  boats  with 
raised  bo-ws,  reminding  one  of  the  gondolas  of  Venice 
or  the  caiques  of  Constantinople.  The  boatmen  were 
tall,  handsome  men  with  swarthy,  resolute  faces,  bril- 
liant black  eyes,  drooping  moustaches  and  aquiline 
noses.  After  the  rude  and  rich  Serbia,  the  monotonous 
deserts  of   Macedonia  and   the  savage  desolation  of 


164       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

upper  Albania,  we  had  now  the  Orient,  with  its  curious 
and  attractive  Eastern  chann. 

Our  final  difficulty  was  the  fording  of  the  river. 
The  ferrymen  refused  to  accept  Serbian  paper-money 
and  all  our  silver  was  gone.  Fortunately  at  this 
moment  a  Montenegrin  officer  of  gendarmerie  rode 
up  and  to  him  we  appealed.  He  settled  the  difficulty 
in  summary  fashion  by  a  plentiful  distribution  of 
blows  from  his  heavy  riding-whip  to  the  men  manning 
the  boat.  The  latter,  it  appeared,  had  orders  to  trans- 
port everyone  coming  from  Serbia  free  of  charge,  so 
that  their  effort  to  extort  money  from  us  was  only  a 
gentle  attempt  at  a  "hold  up." 

Our  first  visit  was  to  the  hotel  where  we  knew  the 
French  Aviation  Corps  was  lodged.  Here  we  were 
given  details  of  the  journey  of  the  corps,  which  had 
fared  even  worse  than  ourselves.  Seventeen  of  their 
horses  had  died  en  route,  so-  that  the  250  officers  and 
men  composing  the  party  had  none  too  much  in  the 
way  of  food  during  the  final  Stapes.  A  section  of  the 
company  had  also  lost  its  way  in  the  marshes  outside 
Scutari,  and  only  reached  the  town  after  tramping 
without  stopping  for  over  twenty  hours.  Twelve  men 
had  frost-bitten  feet  and  had  to  go  intO'  hospital,  but 
all  had  recovered.  At  Scutari  they  found  their  six 
comrades  who  had  come  by  aeroplane  with  the  sick 
men  from  Prisrend.  The  journey  by  air  had  been 
accomplished  in  one  and  a  half  hours,  the  men  on  foot 
had  taken  nearly  eight  days.  After  indulging  in  the 
unusual — and  very  expensive — luxury  of  a  whisky- 
and-soda  we  had  lunch  with  the  equally  unaccustomed 


At  Scutari  165 

luxuries  of  table-cloths  and  serviettes  and  then  went 
in  search  of  quarters.  These  were  not  easy  to  find,  as 
the  Serbians  were  now  pouring  by  thousands  into  the 
town.  But  du  Bochet,  during  his  previous  visit  to 
Scutari,  had  made  the  acquaintance  of  the  Governor 
of  Scutari,  the  Montenegrin  Voivode  Bozha  Petro- 
vitch.  We  paid  a  visit  to  him  at  his  official  residence 
and  he  sent  a  non-commissioned  officer  with  us  to 
requisition  a  lodging. 

The  latter  found  us  a  room  in  the  house  of  a 
"notable"  of  the  town,  a  young  Turkish  Albanian. 
It  was  situated  in  a  side  street.  Behind  an  immense 
gateway  was  a  large  courtyard  and  gardens,  in  the 
centre  of  which  stood  the  house,  a  typical  Turkish 
edifice  of  the  better  class.  We  were  given  a  large  room 
on  the  ground  floor.  Round  the  whole  room  ran  a 
low  divan  on  which  we  would  sit  by  day  and  sleep  by 
night.  The  windows,  Turkish  fashion,  were  closely 
barred.  Every  evening  at  eight  o'clock  a  little  Turkish 
servant,  always  silent  but  always  smiling,  arrived,  and 
after  carefully  removing  his  shoes  as  a  sign  of  respect, 
opened  an  immense  cupboard,  from  which  he  took 
mattresses,  pillows  and  large  and  handsome  silk  quilts 
embroidered  with  large  blue  and  yellow  flowers,  with 
which  he  proceeded  to  make  up  our  beds. 

The  question  of  sleeping  quarters  settled,  the  next 
question  was  that  of  food.  We  found  the  Head- 
quarters Staff  installed  at  the  Hotel  de  la  Ville.  As  the 
dining-room  was  somewhat  small  for  the  number  of 
officers  composing  the  Staff,  we  arranged  with  the 
ever  courteous  but  much  harassed  Colonel  Mitrovitch 


i66       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

to  send  our  man  Stanco  to  fetch  our  meals,  which  we 
ate  at  our  lodgings. 

This  settled  we  went  for  a  tour  of  the  town.  An 
intense  animation  filled  the  streets.  Seated  along  the 
walls  of  the  houses  or  cross-legged  round  the  open 
windows  of  their  small  shops,  or  wandering  about  in 
groups,  Albanians  in  white  skull-caps  and  Turks  with 
crimson  fezes  and  heavy,  brilliantly-embroidered 
waist-belts,  looked  on  impassible  and  apparently  indif- 
ferent to  the  invasion  of  their  city.  A  continual  flood 
of  new  arrivals  inundated  the  town.  There  were 
"Komordjis"  from  Timok,  veritable  tctcs  dc  brigands, 
with  their  brilliant  eyes,  shaggy  beards  and  immense 
sheepskin  bonnets;  soldiers  from  Old  Serbia  in  their 
muddy  uniforms,  with  rusty  rifles  and  heavy  sandals 
covered  with  caked  clay ;  gigantic  mountaineers  from 
the  Uzhitze  districts,  with  their  deep,  guttural  speech 
and  heavy  step,  civilians  in  torn  and  muddy  clothes, 
women  in  men's  dress,  riding  breeches,  and  military 
boots,  and  officers  in  stained  and  dusty  uniforms. 

The  convoys  which  had  struggled  across  the  moun- 
tains were  now  pouring  in,  hundreds  of  Serbian  oxen, 
with  their  magnificent  spreading  horns,  but  starved 
and  lame,  thin-flanked  pack  horses,  hardly  able  to  drag 
themselves  along  under  their  heavy  loads,  and  cavalry 
soldiers,  tramping  along  on  foot,  leading  their  ex- 
hausted mounts. 

Every  barracks  was  full,  all  the  private  houses  had 
been  requisitioned,  and  still  the  flood  of  fugitives 
kept  pouring  into  the  town  in  a  double  stream,  one 
arriving  by  the  route  we  had  followed,  from  Lioum- 


At  Scutari  167 

Koula,  and  the  other  by  the  Montenegrin  road  z'ia 
Ipek  and  Andreyevitza.  The  placid  Turks,  the  tall 
and  sinewy  Albanians  and  the  Myrdite  mountaineers 
in  their  barbaric  costumes,  looked  on  in  silence.  But 
one  felt  that  in  them  was  rising  a  feeling  of  sullen 
rage,  mixed  with  fear. 

This  invasion  of  Scutari  had  the  same  effect  it  had 
had  everywhere  else.  Provisions  began  to  run  down 
and  in  a  few  days  there  was  no'  more  bread  obtainable. 
Taken  completely  by  surprise  (  for  they  had  only  a  day 
or  two's  warning  of  the  decision  of  the  Serbians  to 
retreat  into  Albania)  the  Montenegrin  Government 
had  not  had  time  to  make  preparations.  Besides,  what 
preparation  could  they  have  made  ?  For  months  past 
Montenegro  herself  had  been  short  of  provisions.  Time 
after  time  the  inhabitants  of  the  capital  had  been 
forced  to-  look  on  helpless,  when  before  their  very  eyes, 
Austrian  torpedo  boats  "held  up" and  took  off  to  the 
Bocche  de  Cattaro  the  ships  laden  with  maize  en  route 
for  Antivari. 

Under  these  circumstances  it  may  readily  be 
imagined  that  the  inhabitants  of  Scutari  were  far  from 
hailing  the  Serbian  invasion  with  enthusiasm.  The 
Austrians  must  have  got  wind  of  this,  for  every  morn- 
ing at  ten  o'clock,  with  clock-work  punctuality,  an 
aeroplane  appeared  over  the  town  and  began  dropping 
bombs.  The  first  day  a  number  of  people  were  killed 
and  wounded.  On  the  other  visits  the  casualties  were 
fewer  as  everyone  sought  cover,  but  the  material 
damage  was  considerable.  The  two  points  at  which 
the  bombs  were  aimed  were  the  chief  barracks  and  the 


l68       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

Italian  Consulate.  These  were  about  a  hundred  and 
fifty  yards  from  one  another.  As  the  house  I  was 
quartered  in  was  exactly  in  the  centre  of  this  line  we 
got  full  advantage  of  all  the  bombs  that  missed. 
Fortunately  there  was  a  stable  with  thick  walls  and 
strongly-vaulted  roof,  which  was  practically  bomb- 
proof, in  which  we  could  take  refuge  and  from  which 
we  could  watch  the  explosions  in  safety.  As  during  the 
whole  course  of  the  war  no  aerial  attacks  had  been 
made  on  Scutari  the  object  of  the  new  departure  was 
undoubtedly  to  render  the  Serbians  unpopular  with  the 
inhabitants  of  Scutari,  "Jc^^^-^s"  whose  presence  had 
brought  misfortune  on  the  city. 

As  soon  as  the  Headquarters  Staff  arrived  in 
Scutari  it  began,  with  admirable  energy,  the  work  of 
reorganizing  the  wrecks  of  the  Serbian  Army.  It  was 
without  definite  news  of  the  various  armies,  for  the 
initiative  regarding  the  operations  of  the  retreat  into 
Albania  had  been  left  in  the  hands  of  the  individual 
commanders.  The  first  necessity,  however,  was  to 
collect  provisions  and  arrange  for  their  distribution. 
Then,  as  the  debris  of  the  army  arrived,  the  men  were 
placed  in  barracks  and,  when  these  were  full,  in  camps 
and  bivouacs. 

The  guiding  spirit  of  the  Headquarters  Staff  was 
Colonel  Zhivko  Pavlovitch,  an  energetic  and  inde- 
fatigable Colossus,  the  Chief  of  Staff  of  Field-Marshal 
Putnik,  His  influence  was  quickly  apparent.  Day 
by  day  the  number  of  bivouacs  on  the  hills  behind 
Scutari  became  more  numerous.  With  the  renaissance 
of  order  the  morale  of  the  troops  improved.    The 


At  Scutari  169 

hundreds  of  soldiers  wandering  aimlessly  about  the 
streets  disappeared.  The  division  of  the  Danube  had. 
by  a  miracle  of  energy,  succeeded  in  bringing  over  th( 
mountains  by  the  Ipek  route,  a  number  of  batteriei 
of  field  and  mountain  guns.  These,  in  the  most  diffi 
cult  places,  they  had  dragged  along  by  ropes. 

The  troops  which  had  marched  by  the  Dibra — El- 
Bassan  route  in  the  hope  of  reaching  Monastir  and 
proceeding  thence  by  rail  to  Salonica  to  join  the  Allies 
failed  to  reach  the  former  town  before  the  Bulgarians. 
In  forty-eight  hours  Colonel  Zhivko  Pavlovitch  had 
succeeded  in  getting  in  touch  with  them  and  had  con- 
centrated them  around  Kavaya,  Tirana  and  El-Bassan. 
These  troops  were  later  embarked  at  Durazzo  for 
Corfu. 

A  few  hours  after  the  entry  of  the  Serbians  into 
Scutari  the  officers  of  the  British  Adriatic  Mission 
arrived  in  the  town.  The  object  of  this  mission  was 
to  take  measures  for  feeding,  re-equipping  and  re-or- 
ganizing the  Serbian  Army  in  Albania.  This  was  also 
the  desire  of  the  Headquarters  Staff.  Unfortunately 
the  Italian  Government  was  opposed  to  the  idea.  It 
declared  that  it  was  not  in  a  position  to  assure  the 
safe  passage  of  the  transports  with  food,  clothing, 
arms,  etc.,  across  the  Adriatic. 

That  this  was  precarious  was  proved  by  the  action 
of  the  Austrian  fleet  at  Durazzo  and  San  Giovanni  di 
Medua,  when  a  squadron  of  eight  vessels  suddenly 
appeared  on  December  9th  in  those  ports  and  sank  all 
the  shipping,  steamships  and  saiHng  vessels  then  in 
the  roads. 


170       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

When  I  arrived  at  Durazzo  some  days  afterwards 
M.  Gavrilovitch,  the  Serbian  Minister  Plenipotentiary 
in  that  town,  gave  me  a  description  of  this  incursion, 
which  I  cannot  do  better  than  give  in  his  own  words : 
"I  was  sitting  working  in  my  office,"  he  told  me, 
"when  one  of  my  attaches  came  in  and  annotmced  that 
a  squadron  of  warships  was  in  sight.  I  went  out  to 
the  terrasse  of  the  Legation  whence  I  had  a  view  of 
the  Adriatic.  With  my  field-glass  I  distinguished  a 
squadron  of  eight  ships,  cruisers  and  destroyers, 
steaming  toward  Durazzo.  When  they  came  nearer  I 
could  distinguish  the  Austrian  flag.  As  I  was  con- 
vinced they  were  going  to  seize  that  town,  I  im- 
mediately got  out  the  archives  of  the  Legation,  the 
cypher,  etc.,  and  burnt  the  whole  in  the  courtyard. 
I  fully  expected  to  sleep  that  night  in  Ragusa  as  an 
Austrian  prisoner. 

"Half  an  hour  later  the  warships  arrived  in  the 
roads  and  cast  anchor.  We  expected  tO'  see  a  landing- 
party  put  off  every  minute.  But  hesitation  appeared 
to  prevail.  The  Austrian  Admiral  was  probably  doubt- 
ful of  the  forces  at  the  disposal  of  Essad  Pasha  and 
the  resistance  he  might  encounter.  The  ships  lay  there 
inactive  for  two  hours,  and  then  suddenly  opened  fire 
on  all  the  shipping  in  the  harbour.  They  sank  two 
steamers  and  a  number  of  sailing  vessels.  You  can 
still  see  their  funnels  and  masts  emerging  from  the 
water.  After  that  they  weighed  anchor  and  went  ofif 
to  San  Giovanni  di  Medua,  where  they  repeated  their 
exploit.  They  then  quietly  returned  to  the  Bocche  de 
Cattaro." 


At  Scutari  171 

What  renders  this  affair  so  mysterious  is  that 
Brindisi,  where  scores  of  Italian  warships  of  all  cate- 
gories are  lying,  is  only  two  and  a  half  hours'  steaming 
for  the  swiftest  Italian  destroyers  under  forced  draft. 
I  crossed  from  Durazzo  to  Brindisi  a  fortnight  later, 
on  the  Italian  destroyer  the  Ardito,  and  we  covered 
the  distance  in  about  three  hours  with,  I  was  told,  ten 
knots  in  hand  of  our  full  speed.  As  the  Italian  Lega- 
tion at  Durazzo  possessed  a  wireless  station  that  was  in 
constant  communication  with  Brindisi,  the  Italian 
Admiral  there  must  have  had  news  of  the  approach 
of  the  Austrian  squadron  five  minutes  after  it  ap- 
peared above  the  line  of  the  horizon.  How,  under 
these  circumstances,  it  was  possible  for  it  to  cruise 
undisturbed  in  the  Adriatic  for  five  hours  and  bombard 
two  xAlbanian  harbours  remains  a  dark  and  fearful 
mystery. 

On  October  7th  two  Albanian  non-commissioned 
officers  arrived  at  Scutari  from  San  Giovanni  di 
Medua.  They  had  arrived  there  from  Durazzo  in  a 
motor-boat.  They  reported  that  they  had  accompanied 
two  officers,  sent  by  Essad  Pasha  to  escort  King  Peter 
to  Durazzo.  A  few  miles  from  San  Giovanni  di 
Medua  they  had  been  stopped  by  an  Austrian  sub- 
marine which  had  taken  the  officers  prisoners.  It 
allowed  the  two  non-commissioned  officers  to  continue 
their  voyage,  but  told  them  to  warn  the  Governor  at 
Scutari  that  the  whole  of  the  entrance  to  San  Giovanni 
di  Medua  was  mined.  This,  of  course,  may  only  have 
been  "bluff,"  but  there  was  no  means  of  making  sure 
one  way  or  the  other. 


172       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

We  began  to  see  that  if  we  wanted  to  leave  Albania 
we  would  have  to  get  to  Durazzo  or  perhaps  Valona. 
The  route  by  San  Giovanni  di  Medua,  though  the 
nearest  (it  is  only  25  miles  from  Scutari  by  an 
excellent  road),  was  too  uncertain  to  be  safe.  We 
therefore  began  making  preparations  for  our  journey 
to  Durazzo.  Colonel  Mitrovitch  kindly  furnished  us 
with  three  riding-horses  (we  had  with  us  on  this  part 
of  the  journey  M.  Nikolitch  of  the  Press  Bureau  of 
the  Headquarters  Staff,  who  was  en  mission  to 
Salonica),  a  horse  for  our  baggage  and  a  mounted 
gendarme  and  two  infantry  soldiers  as  our  escort. 
These,  with  the  faithful  Stance,  who  led  our  pack- 
horse,  made  us  a  party  of  seven.  As  all  except  Stanco 
were  armed  we  were  in  a  position  to  defend  our- 
selves if  attacked. 

M.  Yovan  Yovanovitch,  the  Under  Secretary  of 
State  for  Foreign  Affairs,  also  kindly  telegraphed  to 
Essad  Pasha,  to  send  one  of  his  gendarmes  to  meet 
us  at  Alessio  (the  point  where  the  authority  of  the 
Montenegrin  Government  ceases)  to  escort  us  thence 
to  Durazzo.  Thanks  to  the  courtesy  of  M.  Pashitch, 
the  Premier,  we  also  obtained  450  francs  worth  of 
gold,  as  between  Scutari  and  Durazzo,  Serbian  money, 
silver  or  paper,  would  be  useless.  Our  Turkish  host 
also'  gave  us  a  letter  to  his  uncle,  who  was  one  of  the 
"notables"  of  Alessio,  and  who,  he  said,  would,  if  we 
desired  it,  find  us  additional  guides  and  escort.  Under 
these  circumstances  we  set  out  on  December  12th  on 
our  journey  to  Durazzo,  with  every  prospect  of  getting 
there  with  a  minimum  amount  of  difficulty. 


CHAPTER  XIV 


SCUTARI  TO  DURAZZO 


IT  had  daily  become  more  and  more  clear  that  there 
was  little  chance  of  being  able  to  leave  Albania 
by  the  port  of  San  Giovanni  di  Medua.  This  was,  I 
must  confess,  a  disappointment  to  us,  as  it  imposed  on 
us  a  fresh  march  to  Durazzo,  and  perhaps  even 
Valona.  The  one  would  mean  another  week  of  hard- 
ships and  the  other  at  least  a  fortnight,  as  we  would 
be  forced  to  traverse  the  whole  of  Albania  from  north 
to  south.  The  only  consolation  was  that  we  would  be 
able  to  convince  ourselves  de  visu  of  the  condition  and 
numbers  of  the  Serbian  soldiers  who  had  been  able  to 
take  refuge  in  the  territory  ruled  over  by  Essad  Pasha. 
We  started  for  Alessio,  the  first  ctape  on  our 
journey,  at  eight  o'clock  on  the  morning  of  Sunday, 
1 2th  December.  The  weather  was  fine  and  mild,  but 
a  dense  fog  hung  over  the  lake  of  Scutari  and  the 
surrounding  country.  The  road,  however,  was — for 
Albania — an  excellent  one,  and  was  being  still  further 
improved  by  the  work  of  about  1,500  Austrian  prison- 
ers. The  influx  of  such  a  mass  of  Serbians  made  a 
good  road  to  Alessio  a  necessity,  either  for  the  con- 
veyance of  provisions  to  Scutari  or  for  the  transport 
of  the  Serbian  troops,  if  the  difficulties  of  revictualling 
them  should  force  the  authorities  to  evacuate  them. 

173 


174       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

So  good  indeed  was  the  road  that  we  were  able  to 
trot  our  horses  the  greater  part  of  the  distance.  This, 
of  course,  did  not  advance  us  much,  as  we  had,  at  the 
end  of  the  march,  to  await  the  arrival  of  our  pack- 
horse  and  the  two  soldiers  on  foot,  but  it  was  less 
tiring  than  riding  hour  after  hour  at  a  walk.  There 
is  nothing  so  fatiguing  as  to  have  to  crawl  at  a  foot- 
pace along  a  road  that  one  sees  stretching  before  one 
for  miles. 

When  we  drew  near  Alessio,  however,  we  had  to 
leave  the  high-road,  as  the  last  mile  or  twO'  was 
flooded,  and  follow  a  path  running  along  the  face  of 
the  hills.  At  first  this  was  negotiable,  but  after  a 
couple  of  miles  or  so  it  became  so  bad  that  it  was 
dangerous  to  remain  mounted,  as  our  horses  slipped 
and  stumbled  on  the  rocky  ground.  As  we  were 
generally  skirting  declivities  of  considerable  depth  a 
fall  would  probably  have  been  fatal.  To'  our  left  were 
wide  stretches  of  flooded  meadows  with  here  and 
there  a  red-roofed  Albanian  peasant  house.  Just  as  we 
were  approaching  a  sharp  angle  in  our  paths  we  heard 
a  succession  of  shots  and  saw  a  number  of  bullets 
strike  the  water  round  some  cows  which  were  standing 
knee  deep  in  the  flooded  meadows.  A  few  minutes 
later  we  saw  some  Albanian  peasants  armed  with 
rifles  come  out  of  their  huts  and  begin  to  dodge  from 
tree  to  tree,  always  keeping  under  cover  till  they 
reached  the  water  edge. 

As  we  were  moving  along  the  hillside  completely 
exposed  to  their  view  we  felt  somewhat  nervous,  as 
they  might  consider  we  belonged  to  the  party  which 


Scutari  to  Durazzo  175 

was  firing  at  them,  but  which  we  could  not  see,  as  it 
was  concealed  by  the  bend  in  the  path,  and  open  fire 
on  us.  Our  gendarme  made  a  sign  to  us  to  halt,  passed 
the  bridle  of  his  horse  to  me,  drew  his  carbine  and 
went  off  to  reconnoitre.  He  was  gone  about  ten 
minutes,  during  which  the  firing  continued,  but  evi- 
dently, from  the  noise  of  the  reports,  from  a  greater 
distance.  When  he  returned  he  told  us  that  the  firing 
had  been  the  work  of  a  score  or  so  of  Serbian  cavalry 
en  route  for  Alessio,  who  had  been  emptying  their 
carbines  in  sheer  lightness  of  heart.  This  tendency  on 
the  part  of  the  Serbian  soldiers  to  fire  off  their  rifles 
in  this  indiscriminate  way  was  a  great  and  ever- 
growing nuisance.  It  had  begun  shortly  after  we 
left  Krushoumlia  and  was  a  clear  sign  of  relaxing 
discipline. 

When  we  passed  the  party  in  question,  our  gen- 
darme (who  held  the  rank  of  sergeant)  spoke  sharply 
tO'  the  non-commissioned  officer  in  command,  but  only 
got  an  impudent  reply,  while  his  men  regarded  us  with 
sullen  ill-will.  I  imagine  they  had  been  imbibing 
some  of  the  native  raki,  and  that  this  accounted  for 
their  reckless  mood.  In  any  case,  as  soon  as  the  route 
permitted  we  put  spurs  to  our  horses  and  got  ahead 
of  them,  as  we  were  unanimous  in  thinking  that  it  was 
better  to  precede  them  than  fall  heir  to  any  local 
animosities  they  might  arouse. 

It  was  about  four  o'clock  in  the  evening  when  we 
arrived  at  Alessio.  We  had  some  difficulty  in  finding 
the  beg  or  local  dignitary  to  whom  our  host  in  Scutari 
had  given  us  a  letter.    When  we  finally   found  him 


176       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

we  discovered  he  could  speak  nothing  but  Albanian. 
He  was  a  picturesque  figure,  as  his  costume  was  freely 
embroidered  with  gold  and  silver  and  his  handsome 
silver-studded  belt  was  filled  with  an  arsenal  of  silver- 
mounted  knives  and  revolvers.  Through  an  interpret- 
er he  informed  us  that  a  telegram  had  been  received 
from  Essad  Pasha,  stating  that  a  gendarme  would  be 
given  to  us  to  act  as  escort.  When  we  interviewed  the 
latter,  however,  he  informed  us  we  would  have  to 
wait  another  thirty-six  hours  in  Alessio  till  the  weekly 
Italian  mail  from  Scutari  arrived,  as  he  had  also  to 
escort  it  to  Durazzo. 

As  we  were  unwilling  to  lose  another  day  we  deter- 
mined to  push  on  without  this  addition  to  our  force. 
We  got  off  the  next  morning  at  seven  o'clock.  The 
route  lay  over  an  old  Turkish  causeway  of  cobble- 
stones as  large  as  a  child's  head,  worn  as  smooth  as 
glass  by  constant  floods,  over  which  the  horses 
sliddered  as  if  they  were  on  roller  skates.  After  riding 
for  four  or  five  miles,  during  which  my  horse  nearly 
fell  at  least  twice  a  minute,  this  proved  too  much  for 
my  nerves,  and  I  got  down  and  led  him.  A  mile  fur- 
ther I  had  to  mount  again,  as  we  found  that  a  river 
crossed  this  road  at  right  angles  and  that  half  the 
bridge  spanning  it  was  gone.  The  extremity  of  the 
broken  half  remaining  was  buried  in  the  water. 

My  horse  waded  in  and  soon  the  water  was  right 
up  to  his  withers.  On  reaching  the  broken  bridge  I 
found  that  it  did  not  touch  the  ground  in  the  river- 
bed, but  was  suspended  about  four  and  a  half  feet 
from  the  bottom.     My  horse  had  therefore  to  rear 


Scutari  to  Durazzo  177 

up,  place  his  fore  feet  on  the  bridge  and  then  give  a 
spring  on  to  the  wet  and  shppery  planks.  xA.s  he  could 
give  a  chamois  points  for  sure- foot edness  he  managed 
this  apparently  impossible  feat,  but  came  a  cropper 
on  the  greasy  planking,  and  we  nearly  rolled  over  the 
side  again  into  the  river.  Fortunately  the  stump  of 
a  rotten  side-post  brought  us  up  and  we  were  able 
to  struggle  up. 

After  another  mile  or  two  of  cobblestone  causeway 
in  ever-increasing  disrepair,  we  got  to  a  muddy  kind 
of  jungle  through  which  a  vague  path  seemed  to  wind. 
A  heavy  thunderstorm  had  been  banking  up  on  the 
horizon  when  we  left  Alessio  and  now  it  burst  over  us 
with  all  its  fury.  In  a  minute  or  two  the  mud  had 
become  a  swamp  through  which  we  stolidly  splashed 
our  way,  half  blinded  by  the  driving  rain.  Fortunately 
we  came  across  a  wayside  hut  in  which  were  half  a 
dozen  truculent  looking  Albanians.  One  was  in 
agonies  of  toothache,  and  asked  me  if  I  was  a  "hakim" 
or  doctor.  I  had  a  few  tablets  of  aspirin  with  me  and 
gave  him  one,  told  him  to  take  it  and  lie  down  till  it 
took  effect.  In  five  minutes  he  was  so  soundly  asleep 
that  I  got  alarmed.  I  thought  the  dose  might  have 
a  bad  effect  on  a  man  who  had  probably  never  taken 
medicine  in  all  his  life.  But  when  he  woke  up  with 
his  toothache  gone  a  few  hours  later,  his  gratitude 
knew  no  bounds.  He  went  out  and  hunted  up  lodgings 
for  us  in  the  house  of  a  peasant  friend.  The  latter 
drove  a  pretty  stiff  bargain,  a  gold  louis  for  a  night's 
lodgings,  but  once  the  commercial  matter  settled, 
treated  us  with  patriarchal  dignity  as  honoured  guests. 


lyS       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

The  walls  of  his  house  were  made  of  wattle  through 
which  wind  swept  in  a  perfect  gale  on  one  side  and  out 
the  other.  It  required  the  immense  fire  we  had  built 
in  the  centre  to  keep  us  from  freezing,  but  the  rush 
of  air  had  one  good  point,  it  completely  dried  our 
soaking  clothes. 

We  learnt  that  an  hour  away  we  would  find  the  first 
of  three  fords  over  the  Mati  river,  and  as  there  were 
prospects  that  ferrying  facilities  might  be  primitive, 
we  were  off  soon  after  sunrise  next  morning.  The 
way  lay  through  forest  glades,  and  as  brilliant  sun- 
shine prevailed,  the  ride  was  an  enjoyable  one.  Our 
enjoyment  came  to  an  abrupt  conclusion  when  we 
reached  the  ford.  At  this  point  the  river  is  over  a 
hundred  yards  broad.  The  ferry  was  a  long  and 
clumsy  native  boat,  able  to  contain  four  horses  and 
about  twenty  passengers.  On  the  bank  chaos  and  con- 
fusion reigned.  Over  three  hundred  people  and  about 
a  hundred  and  fifty  horses  were  waiting  to  cross.  The 
ferry  was  run  by  a  truculent  Albanian  aided  by  four 
rowers.  On  the  banks  a  score  or  so  of  ruffianly  natives 
were  noisily  shouting  for  "backsheesh"  as  the  price 
of  their  assistance  in  embarking  men  and  animals. 
They  demanded  ten  francs  in  gold  for  each  passenger 
and  twenty  francs  for  each  horse. 

Everybody  was  talking  at  once  and  every  journey 
of  the  boat  was  preceded  by  endless  discussions. 
About  an  hour  later  the  ItaHan  mail  arrived  with  at 
least  a  score  of  pack-horses.  The  "Kavass"  of  the 
Italian  consulate,  who  was  in  charge,  at  once  com- 
mandeered the  ferry  by  the  simple  process  of  laying 


Scutari  to  Durazzo  179 

right  and  left  with  a  heavy-thonged  whip  tumbling  out 
the  horses  already  on  Ixjard  and  expelling  the  pas- 
sengers. After  his  party  had  passed  without  the 
Kavass  paying  the  ferryman  anything  but  a  shower 
of  blows  from  his  riding-whip,  the  former  pandemoni- 
um recommenced.  As  we  were  seven  passengers  and 
five  horses,  there  seemed  little  prospect  of  our  being 
able  to  find  accommodation.  All  day  long  we  watched 
this  scene  of  confusion,  and  when  darkness  fell  the 
ferry  ceased  operations  for  the  night. 

We  had  therefore  again  to  find  lodgings.  At  this 
moment  a  particularly  ill-favoured  Albanian  came  up 
and  offered  us  sleeping  room  in  his  hut,  with  stabling 
for  our  horses.  He  made  the  extortionate  charge  of 
two  gold  louis,  or  forty  francs.  When  we  got  to  his 
hut  (a  small  one)  we  found  it  already  in  the  posses- 
sion of  seven  Austrian  prisoners.  I  will  sleep  in  a  hut 
with  almost  anything,  but  I  draw  the  line  at  Austrian 
prisoners,  who  had  probably  not  had  their  clothes 
off  for  a  matter  of  six  months.  As  they  refused  to 
leave,  I  declared  that  I  would  rather  go  and  sleep  in 
the  stable  where  our  horses  had  been  placed.  As  the 
night  was  not  cold  we  could  put  them  out  of  doors 
without  danger.  This  we  did,  and  found  the  stables 
quite  as  comfortable  and  rather  more  water-tight  than 
the  peasant's  hut. 

After  dinner  we  held  a  council  of  war.  It  was  clear 
that  seven  passengers  and  five  horses  was  a  large 
order  for  the  ferry.  As  our  riding-horses  were  really 
little  use  to  us,  I  proposed  that  we  should  send  two  of 
them  back  to  Scutari  under  the  charge  of  the  gendarme 


i8o       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

and  one  of  the  soldiers.  This  would  reduce  our  party 
to  five,  with  two  pack-horses.  If  we  were  at  the  river 
at  dawn  when  the  ferry  started  work  there  was  every 
chance  we  could  get  across.  At  this  moment  we  all 
started.  A  carbine  had  been  fired  just  alongside  the 
hut,  I  and  du  Bochet  grabbed  our  revolvers  and  ran 
outside.  We  were  just  in  time  to  find  our  gendarme 
firing  a  second  shot  from  his  carbine,  and  saw  the 
white-clad  figures  of  a  number  of  Albanians  running 
off  in  the  darkness.  The  gendarme  had  heard 
whistling  all  round  the  hut,  and  suspected  this  was  the 
signal  of  a  band  of  horse  thieves  (as  it  in  all  prob- 
ability was).  He  watched  them  creeping  nearer  in 
the  darkness  and  had  then  let  fly  at  them.  As  they 
had  evidently  bolted  we  returned  to  the  hut.  Five 
minutes  later  we  received  the  visit  of  three  of  Essad's 
gendarmes,  who  wanted  to  know  what  the  reason  for 
the  firing  had  been.  They  were  accompanied  by  our 
rascally  landlord,  who,  I  strongly  suspect,  had  given 
his  thievish  neighbours  the  hint  that  we  had  turned  out 
our  horses  in  the  field.  I  arranged  that  the  horses 
should  be  attached  and  that  the  gendarme,  the  soldiers 
and  Stanco  should  mount  guard  in  turn  all  night.  As 
a  result  all  our  horses  were  still  there  when  we  awoke 
next  morning. 

We  gave  the  gendarme  and  the  soldier  their  march- 
ing orders  and  lOO  dinars  as  inaticum  for  their  return 
journey  to  Scutari,  and  betook  ourselves  to  the  ferry 
boat.  We  were  fortunate  enough  to  be  the  first  to 
cross,  for  the  trifling  fare  of  90  francs  in  gold,  or 
nearly  £4.    In  ordinary  times  the  charge  would  have 


Scutari  to  Durazzo  i8i 

been  25  centimes  for  each  passenger  and  50  centimes 
for  each  horse,  or  a  total  of  2  francs,  50  centimes 
(2  shilHngs).  The  ferryman  and  his  rascally  assistants 
were  making  about  £100  per  day.  My  only  hope  was 
that  they  would  get  their  deserts  when  the  Serbian 
troops  began  to  cross.  The  ctape  to  the  next  ford 
was  uneventful,  and  we  reached  it  before  sundown. 
The  first  ferry  had,  of  course,  held  back  the  crowd, 
so  that  at  the  two  remaining  ferries  no  time  was 
lost,  and  the  prices  were  only  one  franc  a  head  for 
passengers  and  two  for  each  horse.  We  passed  the 
night  in  bivouac  on  the  other  bank  and  started  next 
morning  for  the  third  ford.  This  was  about  the  worst 
day's  march  of  the  whole  journey.  About  a  couple  of 
miles  from  the  river  we  entered  a  swampy  jungle 
through  which  hundreds  of  paths  seemed  to  run.  In 
half  an  hour  we  seemed  completely  lost.  All  we  could 
do  was  to  steer  by  the  compass.  On  consulting  the 
map  the  course  seemed  to  be  south  with  about  two 
points  to  the  west.  We  took  this  course  and  began  to 
burst  our  way  through  the  jungle,  splashing  up  to  the 
knees  in  mud,  tearing  our  clothes  and  scratching  our 
leggings  on  hundreds  of  thorns.  The  chief  difificulty 
was  with  our  horses.  We  could  edge  our  way  among 
the  trees,  but  the  laden  pack  animals  had  to  rasp 
their  way  by  main  force  through  trees  and  under- 
growth. The  condition  of  our  baggage  after  three 
hours  of  this  regime  may  be  imagined.  But  we  were 
in  luck  as  regards  our  direction,  for  when  we  finally 
struggled  clear  of  the  jungle  we  found  ourselves  barely 
five  hundred   yards   from  the   ferry.     The  boat  was 


i82       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

unable  to  accommodate  horses,  so  we  had  to  unload 
them  and  swim  them  across  and  reload  them  on  the 
other  side,  an  operation  which  took  time. 

The  road  on  the  other  side,  though  hilly,  proved  to 
be  in  good  condition,  and  two  hours  later  we  were 
safely  installed  in  the  village  of  Ishmi,  perched  on  the 
western  slope  of  the  mountains.  Here  for  the  first 
time  we  came  in  view  of  the  sea.  Forty-five  kilo- 
metres away  we  could  see  the  gleam  of  the  Adriatic, 
with  the  white  houses  and  graceful  minarets  of 
Durazzo  nestling  at  the  base  of  a  high  hill. 

The  accommodation  at  Ishmi  was,  for  Albania, 
unusually  good.  The  peasants  with  whom  we  lodged 
killed  and  broiled  a  fowl,  and  provided  us  with  new- 
laid  eggs  and  sour  milk.  Our  host,  a  young  Albanian 
who  spoke  a  little  Italian  (he  had  been  employed  by 
an  Italian  company  which  owned  a  timber  conces- 
sion), offered  to  guide  us  to  Durazzo  by  an  easy  path 
over  the  mountains.  For  this  we  gave  him  a  gold  louis 
and  a  pair  of  boots. 

Next  morning  we  set  out  in  brilliant  sunshine. 
Though  we  were  only  a  few  days  from  Christmas, 
by  midday  it  was  oppressively  warm — but  the  road 
was  so  good  we  could  swing  along  the  whole  day 
at  a  steady  four  miles  an  hour.  We  slept  the  night 
at  Presa,  in  the  house  of  a  relative  of  our  guide,  and 
next  day  completed  our  last  etape  tO'  Durazzo.  Three- 
quarters  of  this  was  along  an  excellent  high  road 
which  runs  from  Tirana  to  Durazzo  and  offered  no 
difficulties. 

As  we  drew  near  Durazzo  we  began  to  see  abundant 


Scutari  to  Durazzo  183 

signs  of  the  presence  of  the  remnants  of  the  Serbian 
Army.  On  all  the  hills  on  either  side  of  the  road 
camps  and  bivouacs  had  been  installed.  On  the  road 
a  constant  stream  of  country  carts  were  pouring  empty 
toward  the  town,  while  an  equal  number  filled  with 
stacks  of  flour  and  potatoes,  straw,  hay,  and  huge 
pieces  of  freshly-killed  meat  were  moving  in  the 
opposite  direction.  In  addition  to  the  carts  innumer- 
able fatigue  parties,  each  man  with  an  empty  sack  on 
his  shoulder,  were  marching  in  the  direction  of 
Durazzo,  and  other  parties,  bending  under  the  weight 
of  their  burdens,  were  returning  to  camp.  Mounted 
officers  were  riding  in  all  directions  and  groups  of 
soldiers  were  running  field  telegraphs  along  the  roads 
and  across  the  fields  to  put  the  various  camps  in  com- 
munication with  one  another  and  with  Durazzo. 

The  camps  and  bivouacs  were  laid  out  in  orderly 
lines,  trenches  to  run  off  the  water  had  been  dug, 
horses  were  picketed  in  symmetrical  rows  or  turned 
loose  to  graze  on  the  mountain  side.  It  was  clear 
that  military  order  and  discipline  had  been  already 
re-established  and  progress  towards  reorganization 
had  already  been  made.  Of  course  many  of  the  men 
still  bore  evident  signs  of  the  hardships  they  had 
undergone,  many  were  seated  around  in  the  camps  and 
bivouacs  still  too  weak  and  exhausted  to  undertake 
any  military  duties.  But  these  were  the  minority.  As 
we  came  closer  to  the  town  the  number  of  camps 
increased  and  an  ever-increasing  animation  was 
everywhere  visible.  It  was  a  convincing  proof  of  the 
marvellous  vitality  of  the  Serbian  soldier.    I  had  the 


184       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

impression  that  in  a  few  short  weeks  the  army  would 
be  again  a  fighting  machine  ready  to  take  the  field. 

Around  Durazzo  there  were  encamped  about  twenty 
thousand  men,  with  probably  four  or  five  thousand 
horses.  Many  of  the  cavalry  horses  were  in  very  poor 
case,  but  those  that  had  survived  the  hardships  of  the 
march  across  the  mountains  were  the  animals  posses- 
sing stamina  and  staying  power,  and  a  week  or  two's 
rest  would  make  them  fit  for  service.  Of  course  there 
were  no  field  guns  or  Serbian  Army  service  wagons. 
All  these  had  been  either  buried  or  destroyed  before 
leaving  Serbian  territory.  But  as  the  pursuing  enemy 
would  also  be  unable  to  bring  over  his  field  guns  he 
would  be  equally  handicapped.  But  the  men  were  sadly 
in  need  of  boots  and  uniforms.  The  long  tramp  over 
the  mountains  had  given  the  coup  de  grace  to  foot- 
wear that  had  already  been  tried  by  the  long  retreat. 
The  uniforms  were  in  rags.  In  many  instances  they 
were  badly  burnt,  showing  how  closely  their  wearers 
had  had  to  gather  round  the  bivouac  fires  on  the  freez- 
ing mountain  heights. 

With  the  soldiers  were  the  men  of  the  new  "classe," 
youths  of  eighteen  and  nineteen  who  had  been  called 
out  to  join  the  colours.  These  had,  however,  suffered 
terribly  during  the  passage  into  Albania.  Not  belong- 
ing to  any  military  unit,  they  had  no  organization  or 
commissariat.  They  had  started  out  with  a  loaf  or  two 
of  bread  in  their  haversacks,  and  when  this  was  gone 
they  had  simply  starved.  Many  were  without  great- 
coats, and  had  faced  the  mountain  snow  with  nothing 
but  their  ordinary  peasant's  costume.    When  they  ar- 


Scutari  to  Durazzo  185 

rived  at  Dibra,  El-Bassan  and  Durazzo  they  were 
walking  skeletons.  Hundreds,  perhaps  thousands,  suc- 
cumbed to  their  privations.  1  was  told  that  between 
thirty-five  and  forty  thousand  had  managed  to  reach 
the  bivouacs. 

The  great  want  was  the  insufficient  number  of 
surgeons  and  Red  Cross  Units  to  cope  with  the  number 
of  sick.  It  would  have  been  necessary  to  establish 
special  camps  for  these  and  give  them  special  attention 
and  treatment,  but  unfortunately  this  was  out  of  the 
question.  The  floods  and  inundations  which  covered 
the  lower  part  of  the  plain  behind  the  town  and 
towards  Valona  made  it  difficult  to  find  good  camping 
grounds,  and  in  many  instances  the  sick  and  starving 
were  unable  to  make  the  effort  necessary  to  reach 
the  higher  grounds. 

When  we  reached  the  entrance  to  Durazzo  the 
soldier  of  our  escort  and  Stanco  had  to  give  up  their 
rifles,  for  which  they  were  given  a  receipt.  By  order 
of  Essad  Pasha  no  Serbian  soldier  in  arms  was  to  enter 
the  town.  In  fact,  no  soldiers  were  allowed  to  enter 
it  at  all  unless  they  were  in  possession  of  a  regular 
pass  proving  that  they  had  business  there. 

We  were  disappointed  to  see  a  three-masted  sailing 
ship  flying  the  American  flag  weighing  her  anchor 
just  as  we  entered  the  town.  Du  Bochet  thought  that 
he,  being  Swiss  and  neutral,  might  have  been  able  to 
reach  Italy  on  board  her,  as  the  vessel,  being  Amer- 
ican, would  escape  seizure  or  torpedoing  by  the  Aus- 
trian submarines.  We  learnt  afterwards  that  she 
would  not  have  been  a  very  safe  ship  to  travel  on,  as 


i86       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

she  was  strongly  suspected  of  being  in  the  pay  of  Aus- 
tria and  to  be  cruising  in  the  Adriatic  to  spy  and 
report  to  the  Austrian  Admirahy  at  Pola. 

In  fact,  we  saw  her  back  at  her  moorings  next 
morning,  and  during  the  night  we  noted  she  used  to 
hang  out  what  seemed  an  unnecessarily  large  number 
of  lanterns.  As  there  was  always  an  Austrian  sub- 
marine cruising  just  outside  the  harbour  this  excited 
grave  suspicion.  She  had  been  wandering  about  from 
one  port  to  another — Italian,  Austrian  and  Albanian — 
for  two  months  past.  As  the  amount  of  business  she 
did  did  not  seem  sufficient  to  pay  her  working  ex- 
penses, the  reason  for  her  being  in  these  waters  was 
not  apparent.  All  this,  as  I  have  said,  exposed  her  to 
considerable  suspicions,  and  she  was  kept  under  very 
close  observation.  But  as  her  papers  as  an  American 
merchant  vessel  were  all  in  order  and  she  was  never 
taken  in  flagranti  delicto  of  espionage,  nothing  could 
be  done  to  interfere  with  her  movements. 

The  harbour  presented  a  desolate  appearance.  Near 
the  shore  the  funnels  of  two  steamers  sunk  by  the 
Austrians  during  the  bombardment  of  the  port  on 
December  9th  emerged  from  the  water,  while  further 
out  could  be  seen  the  tops  of  the  masts  of  the  sailing 
vessels  sunk  on  the  same  occasion.  Near  the  jetty  a 
small  steam  transport  was  lying.  She  was  a  vessel 
of  about  1,200  tons,  and  had  safely  made  the  run  from 
Brindisi  with  food  for  the  Serbian  Army.  She  had 
taken  over  six  hundred  Serbian  refugees  eager  to 
reach  Italy  on  board,  but  could  not  leave,  as  an  Aus- 
trian submarine  was  known  to  be  cruising  outside. 


Scutari  to  Durazzo  187 

The  refugees  had  been  on  board  her  for  over  five 
days.  The  sufferings  of  six  hundred  people  packed 
Hke  herrings  in  a  barrel  in  the  ill-ventilated  hold  of 
a  small  tramp  steamer  may  be  imagined. 

In  the  town  we  found  that,  as  usual,  famine  prices 
prevailed,  due  to  the  influx  of  Serbians.  We  had  to 
pay  twenty  francs  a  day  for  a  most  doubtful-looking 
room  in  a  fourth-rate  Albanian  inn.  I  suppose  it  would 
have  been  dear  at  a  franc  and  a  half  in  ordinary 
times.  But  though  prices  were  high,  this  seemed  due 
more  to  commercial  speculation  than  to  absolute  dearth 
of  provisions.  There  were  a  large  number  of  shops 
run  by  Italians  in  which  sausages,  ham,  macaroni, 
biscuits,  fruit,  wine,  etc.,  could  be  procured.  Such 
luxuries  as  pickles,  Worcestershire  sauce,  chutney, 
Liebig's  extract  and  Bovril  were  also  visible  in  the 
windows. 

Beer  was  also  procurable,  the  first  we  had  seen  for 
two  months.  The  bottles  were  small  and  the  quality 
indifferent.  But  if  the  bottles  were  small  it  was  more 
than  could  be  said  of  the  prices.  We  incautiously  con- 
sumed three  bottles  without  first  inquiring  the  price, 
and  were  somewhat  staggered  when  we  got  a  bill  for 
eighteen  francs.  The  price  in  Italy  would  have  been 
about  fourpence  apiece. 


CHAPTER  XV 


AT   DURAZZO 


ONCE  installed  we  sallied  forth  to  see  if  we  could 
obtain  any  reliable  information  regarding  the 
military  situation  and  the  prospects  of  obtaining  a 
passage  to  Italy. 

As  regards  the  military  situation  there  was  little 
difficulty  in  obtaining  information.  The  remnants  of 
the  Serbian  Army  were  still  pouring  into  Scutari  via 
Montenegro  and  by  the  Albanian  route  via  Lioum- 
Koula  and  Puka.  The  same  held  good  regarding  the 
"classe"  or  young  men  liable  to-  military  service.  Over 
fifty  thousand  men,  soldiers  and  recruits,  had  managed 
to  reach  the  environs  of  Scutari.  Troops  of  the  Second 
and  Third  Armies  and  young  recruits  were  still  arriv- 
ing at  Dibra  and  El-Bassan,  and  being  pushed  on 
towards  Durazzo.  Round  Durazzo  over  twenty  thou- 
sand were  already  encamped.  It  was  calculated  that, 
all  told,  about  one  hundred  and  fifty  thousand 
Serbians,  soldiers  and  recruits,  had  escaped  from  the 
disaster  at  Prisrend. 

But  unfortunately  we  learned  that  the  Bulgarians 
were  in  close  pursuit  and  that  Dibra  would  in  all 
probability  have  to  be  evacuated.  This  was  actually 
done  before  we  left  Durazzo'  five  days  later,  and  the 


At  Durazzo  189 

troops  moved  on  to  El-Bassan.  The  Combined 
Divisions  and  some  other  units  were  still  to  be  counted 
on  as  a  military  force,  and  were  delaying  the  Bul- 
garian advance,  I  received  the  sad  news  of  the  convoy 
of  the  Combined  Division  with  which  we  had  travelle"d 
to  Pristina.  It  had  been  attacked  in  the  mountains 
by  an  Albanian  clan  and  most  of  the  "Komordjis" 
massacred.  Among  the  victims  were  the  major  and 
his  wife  from  whom  I  had  had  hospitality,  as  well  as 
the  veterinary  surgeon  attached  to  the  column  and  his 
little  fifteen-year-old  son. 

The  advance  of  the  Austrian  and  Bulgarian  forces 
was  beginning  to  arouse  considerable  anxiety,  as  it 
would  still  further  complicate  the  already  difficult 
problem  of  the  re-victualling  of  the  Serbian  Army. 
Unless  food  was  promptly  forthcoming  it  would  be 
impossible  to  count  on  any  help  from  the  Serbian 
Army  in  resisting  or  delaying  the  advance  of  the 
enemy.  Two  solutions  were  put  forward.  One  pro- 
posal was  that  the  Serbian  Army  should  be  withdrawn 
from  Albania  and  conveyed  to  some  other  centre  to 
be  re-equipped  and  reorganized.  The  other  proposal 
was  that  it  should  remain  in  Albania  and  be  reorgan- 
ized there.  But  for  this  it  would  be  necessary  to 
guarantee  that  the  Adriatic  should  be  efficiently 
policed,  and  this  Italy  seemed  unwilling  to  under- 
take. It  was  also  the  desire  of  the  Headquarters  Staff 
that  the  Serbian  Army  should  not  quit  Albania. 

The  Serbian  Army  is  a  peasant  one  and  has  little 
comprehension  of  the  problems  of  tactics  and  strategy 
and  still  less  of  those  of  international  politics.     As 


190       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

long  as  it  was  in  Albania  it  saw  the  line  of  blue  moun- 
tains on  the  horizon  and  knew  that  Serbia  lay  on  the 
other  side.  But  if  conveyed  to  foreign  countries  it 
would  feel  depayse,  torn  up  by  the  roots.  Not  one  Ser- 
bian soldier  had  ever  seen  the  sea,  and  if  transported 
across  it  for  hundreds  of  miles  he  would  feel  himself 
lost.  It  is  possible  to  explain  to  a  British  or  French 
soldier  that  when  he  is  fighting  in  France,  in  Egypt, 
in  Gallipoli  or  in  Mesopotamia  he  is  still  fighting  for 
his  country  and  defending  its  cause.  But  such  argu- 
ments would  be  lost  on  the  Serbian  soldier,  they  are 
beyond  his  primitive  mentality.  But  of  course  every- 
thing depended  on  the  maintenance  of  supplies,  and 
for  this  it  was  necessary  to  clear  the  Adriatic  of  hostile 
war  vessels,  notably  submarines.  It  would  further  be 
necessary  to  largely  reinforce  the  Italian  troops  at 
Valona  and  send  strong  detachments  to  central  and 
northern  Albania  to  oppose  the  advance  of  the  Aus- 
trian and  Bulgarian  Armies.  It  was  specially  necessary 
to  check  the  advance  of  the  latter  from  Dibra  and 
El-Bassan. 

It  was  evident  that  if  the  Bulgarians  should  reach 
Durazzo  the  fate  of  the  forty  or  fifty  thousand 
Serbians,  including  the  Headquarters  Staff,  at  Scutari 
would  be  sealed,  as  they  would  be  completely  isolated 
and  shut  in  between  the  Austrian  and  Bulgarian 
Armies.  During  my  stay  in  Durazzo  the  Austrian 
submarine  was  continually  en  evidence.  She  even  en- 
gaged in  an  artillery  duel  with  the  small  transport  in 
the  harbour,  which  was  armed  with  a  couple  of  small 
guns. 


At  Durazzo  191 

The  following  day  when  I  called  on  Essad  Pasha  T 
found  him  anxious  but  far  from  depressed.  He  had 
that  day  formally  declared  war  on  Austria-Hungary 
and  Bulgaria  and  had  the  Consuls  of  these  countries 
arrested,  and  had  placed  them  on  board  the  American 
three-master  to  which  I  have  made  reference  above. 
He  told  me  the  Allies  could  count  on  him  to  the 
death.  It  was  certain  that  after  his  expulsion  of  the 
Prince  of  Wied,  the  puppet  King  imposed  on  Albania 
by  the  Central  Powers,  that  the  latter  would  show 
him  no  mercy.  Of  the  ultimate  victory  of  the  Allies 
he  had  no  doubt,  though  in  common  with  everyone 
else  he  deplored  the  errors  of  their  policy  in  the 
Balkans.  He  frankly  admitted  the  critical  nature  of 
the  situation  created  by  the  presence  of  the  Austrian 
and  Bulgarian  troops  in  Albania.  He  himself,  beyond 
his  6,000  gendarmes,  did  not  dispose  of  any  organized 
troops.  It  was  clear  that  if  Italy  could  not  guarantee 
the  safety  of  the  transports  of  the  Allies  in  the 
Adriatic,  nothing  remained  but  to  evacuate  the  Serbian 
Army,  and  even  do  it  promptly. 

On  leaving-  Essad  Pasha  I  went  to  call  on  Baron 
Allioti,  the  Italian  Minister  in  Durazzo,  at  the  Lega- 
tion— the  handsomest  and  most  imposing  building  in 
the  town.  It  is  flanked  on  one  side  by  the  Consulate 
and  the  Italian  hospital,  and  on  the  other  by  the  wire- 
less station,  by  which  the  Minister  is  in  telegraphic 
communication  with  Brindisi.  He  informed  me  that" 
Italian  torepdo  boats  were  coming  over  to  escort  the 
transport   in  the  harbour  to  Brindisi,  and  promised 


192       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

that  du  Bochet  and  myself  would  be  given  means  of 
reaching  Italy. 

On  leaving  the  Legation  I  met  the  Italian  battalion, 
which  had  just  arrived,  marching  through  the  streets. 
They  seemed  a  fine,  sturdy  body  of  men,  in  their 
workmanlike  grey  service  uniforms.  There  were  two 
more  battalions  in  a  village  twO'  hours'  distance  from 
Durazzo  and  others  echelonned  along  the  route  from 
Valona.  The  road,  however,  was  in  bad  condition 
owing  to  floods.  The  battalion  in  Durazzo  had  been 
eight  days  on  the  march  from  Valona.  I  was 
extremely  glad  that  the  promise  given  us  by  Baron 
Allioti  made  it  unnecessary  for  us  to  undertake  the 
march  to  Valona.  After  the  experience  we  had  under- 
gone in  the  retreat  from  Prisrend  and  our  journey 
from  Scutari,  we  had  no  desire  to  negotiate  another 
hundred  miles  of  swamp  and  mountains  in  Albania. 

The  following  morning  we  received  instructions  to 
present  ourselves  at  nine  o'clock  in  the  evening  to 
Lieutenant  Musellardi,  of  the  Italian  Navy,  who  was 
acting  as  captain  of  the  port.  We  expected  that  at 
that  hour  we  would  go  on  board  the  transport  lying 
in  the  bay.  But  when  we  reached  the  jetty  we  were 
informed  that  we  would  cross  on  the  Italian  destroyer 
which  was  coming  to  escort  the  transport  to  Brindisi. 
By  this  time  a  score  or  so  of  persons  had  assembled  on 
the  jetty  who  were  to  be  our  fellow  travellers.  These 
included  Prince  and  Princess  Alexis  Karageorgevitch 
and  their  suite  and  a  number  of  Serbian  stafif  officers. 
Two  Albanian  sailing-boats  with  huge  lug  sails,  such 
as  one  generally  sees  during  the  coasting  trade  on  the 


At  Durazzo  193 

Albanian  coast,  were  rocking  alongside  the  quay  to 
convey  us  to  the  destroyer  as  soon  as  she  should 
appear.  But  hour  after  hour  passed.  It  was  nearly 
midnight  when  two  quick  flashes  in  the  Egyptian  dark- 
ness of  the  horizon  announced  the  arrival  of  the 
destroyer. 

The  baggage  was  hastily  loaded  on  the  boats,  which 
at  once  pushed  ofif  and  made  in  the  direction  the 
flashes  had  been  seen.  But  it  is  one  thing  to  go  in 
search  of  a  small  vessel  like  a  destroyer  at  night  in  an 
open  bay  and  another  thing  to  find  her.  For  over  an 
hour  we  cruised  backwards  and  forwards  in  the  black 
darkness.  A  heavy  sea  made  the  boat  roll  heavily,  so 
much  so  that  some  of  the  passengers  began  to  pay  their 
tribute  to  Neptune.  Then  the  destroyer  risked  yet  an- 
other flash  from  her  searchlight  and  we  could  at  last 
locate  her. 

Once  alongside  the  passengers  and  luggage  were 
transferred  with  all  speed  to  the  destroyer,  which 
turned  out  to  be  the  Ardito,  a  thirty-six  knot  boat,  one 
of  the  swiftest  in  the  Italian  Navy.  Three  more 
destroyers  and  a  couple  of  French  cruisers  were,  we 
were  told,  lying  outside  the  bay.  The  period  of  wait- 
ing till  the  transport  with  the  600  Serbian  refugees 
got  up  her  anchor  and  got  under  way  was  the  most 
anxious  moment.  Every  instant  we  expected  to  see  a 
torpedo  launched  from  the  Austrian  submarine,  which 
we  knew,  from  optical  proof,  was  cruising  outside. 

But  nothing  happened,  and  the  Ardito,  with  her 
clumsy  protege  (whose  fastest  pace  was  about  seven 
knots)    slowly  but  surely  crawled  out  of  the  roads. 


194       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

Half  an  hour  later  we  rejoined  the  other  destroyers 
outside  and  confided  to  them  the  task  of  escorting  the 
transport.  As  soon  as  the  transfer  was  effected  the 
Ardito  suddenly  put  on  speed  and  began  to  walk 
through  the  water  at  twenty-six  knots  an  hour.  Every- 
body on  board  heaved  a  sigh  of  relief,  as  a  ship 
travelling  like  an  express  train  furnishes  an  almost 
impossible  target  for  a  submarine.  Two  and  a  half 
hours  later  we  entered  Brindisi  harbour.  There  for 
miles  on  either  hand  lay  scores  of  Dreadnoughts, 
battleships,  battle  cruisers,  armoured  and  protected 
cruisers,  destroyers,  torpedo  boats  and  submarines,  all 
with  steam  up  night  and  day.  This  display  of  Italy's 
naval  strength  only  deepened  the  mystery  of  her 
apparent  inaction  in  presence  of  the  Austrian  sub- 
marines and  cruisers.  With  steam  coal  at  over  a  hun- 
dred francs  a  ton  it  must  have  cost  a  small  fortune 
to  keep  this  magnificent  fleet  under  steam  pressure 
night  and  day.  This  only  increased  the  surprise  felt 
by  the  uninitiated  at  the  apparent  inaction  of  the 
Italian  fleet. 

Just  as  a  grey  and  cheerless  dawn  was  beginning  to 
appear  I  set  foot  on  Italian  soil,  which  I  had  quitted 
nearly  foar  months  before.  But  in  these  four  short 
months  much  history  had  been  made,  and  one  of  the 
bravest,  if  one  of  the  smallest,  nations  of  Europe  had, 
for  the  moment  at  least,  ceased  to  exist. 


CHAPTER  XVI 

THE  EVACUATION   OF  ALBANIA   BY  THE  SERBIAN   ARMY 

AFTER  my  arrival  in  Italy  I  had  an  opportunity 
of  discussing  the  position  of  the  Serbian  Army 
in  Albania  with  a  number  of  diplomatists  and  military 
men.  I  found  opinions  much  divided.  The  British 
and  French  were  in  favour  of  the  Serbian  Army  being 
revictualled,  re-equipped  and  reorganized  on  Albanian 
soil.  The  British  Adriatic  Commission  had  already 
sent  missions  of  oflfiicers  to  Scutari,  San  Giovanni  di 
Medua  and  Brindisi.  The  Commission  was  under  the 
command  of  Brigadier-General  Taylor,  who  had  his 
headquarters  at  Rome. 

But  the  first  condition  for  the  successful  achieve- 
ment of  the  object  of  the  Commission  was  the  cer- 
tainty that  the  transports  containing  food,  arms, 
clothing,  etc.,  should  be  able  to  reach  their  destina- 
tion in  safety.  For  this  it  would  be  necessary  to  assure 
them  against  attack  by  Austrian  submarines.  This 
was  the  task  of  the  Italian  navy.  But  the  Admiral 
commanding  at  Brindisi  was  of  opinion  that  it  offered 
insuperable  difficulties.  The  Albanian  coast  has  no 
harbours.  Durazzo  and  San  Giovanni  di  Medua  are 
open  roadsteads.  It  is  only  possible  to  land  goods  in 
favourable  weather.    Only  small  vessels  can  be  em- 

195 


196       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

ployed,  as  large  ones  cannot  approach  the  coast.  This 
naturally  increases  the  number  of  the  transports,  and 
the  difficulty  of  escorting  and  protecting  them  would 
overtax  the  powers  of  the  fleet  in  Brindisi. 

The  Italian  staff  was  also  of  opinion  that  the 
Serbians  were  not  in  a  position  tO'  resist  the  simul- 
taneous invasion  of  Albania  by  the  Austro-German 
and  Bulgarian  Armies.  This  would  have  entailed  the 
necessity  for  Italy  of  reinforcing  her  garrison  at 
Valona  and  occupying  other  strategic  points  in 
Albania.  This  Italy  was  unwilling  to  do,  as  the  diffi- 
culty of  feeding  and  maintaining  a  large  army  there 
was  too  great.  In  addition  the  Italian  troops  might 
have  found  themselves  face  to  face  with  German 
troops.  Italy,  however,  had  not  declared  war  on  Ger- 
many and  was  anxious  to  avoid  possible  points  of  con- 
tact with  that  Power. 

While  these  discussions  were  going  on  between  the 
three  Governments  events  were  moving  rapidly.  The 
Bulgarians  advanced  from  Dibra  to  El-Bassan  and 
threatened  Durazzo,  while  the  Austrians  captured 
Mount  Lovtchen  and  made  themselves  practically  mas- 
ters of  Montenegro  and  threatened  Scutari. 

The  position  of  the  Serbian  Army  became  critical 
in  the  extreme.  There  were  over  fifty  thousand  men 
in  and  around  Scutari.  If  the  Bulgarian  Army  at  El- 
Bassan  should  reach  Durazzo  it  would  cut  Albania  in 
two  halves  and  would  leave  the  Serbian  forces  at 
Scutari  no'  port  of  embarkation  except  San  Giovanni 
di  Medua.  The  problem  of  embarking  such  a  force 
from  a  small  open  roadstead  seemed  insoluble.    As 


The  Evacuation  of  Albania     197 

the  members  of  the  Government  and  the  Headquarters 
Staff  were  still  at  Scutari  the  capture  of  the  troops 
there  would  have  been  an  absolute  disaster.  As  it 
was  the  task  of  transporting  them  to  Durazzo  and 
San  Giovanni  di  Medua  bristled  with  difficulties  of 
every  kind. 

The  next  question  to  be  settled,  in  case  the  evacua- 
tion was  decided  on,  was  the  destination  of  the 
Serbian  troops.  Various  places  were  suggested, 
Corsica,  Tunis,  Algeria,  etc.,  but  the  spot  finally 
selected  was  Corfu.  The  island,  it  is  true,  was  Greek, 
and  the  Powers  did  not  dispose  of  it  as  their  property. 
But  it  was  difficult  for  Greece  to  refuse  hospitality  to 
the  Serbians  as  Serbia  was  an  allied  state.  There  had 
been  a  difference  of  opinion  between  the  Serbian  and 
the  Greek  Governments  as  to  the  obligations  imposed 
on  them  by  the  Greco-Serbian  Treaty  of  19 13.  Serbia 
argued  that  by  it  Greece  was  bound  to  come  tO'  her  aid 
if  she  was  attacked  by  Bulgaria;  the  Athens  Govern- 
ment took  the  view  that  it  only  became  operative  if 
Bulgaria  alone  attacked  Serbia,  but  did  not  force 
Greece  to  come  to  the  aid  of  Serbia  if  other  Powers 
took  part  in  the  attack.  But  the  treaty  had  not  been 
denounced  by  either  party,  there  was  only  a  difference 
of  opinion  as  to  its  interpretation.  Greece  and  Serbia 
were  therefore  still  technically  allies,  so  that  it  was 
difficult  for  the  former  to  refuse  hospitality  to  the 
army  of  King  Peter. 

The  island  of  Corfu  offered  many  advantages.  It 
was  only  a  few  hours'  steaming  from  the  Albanian 
coast.    The  risks  of  a  long  voyage  for  a  large  fleet 


198       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

of  transports  were  therefore  got  rid  of,  and  the  evac- 
uation could  be  carried  out  rapidly,  as  the  same  vessels 
could  go  backwards  and  forwards  between  the 
Albanian  ports  and  the  island.  Climatically  Corfu 
left  nothing  to  be  desired,  as  the  temperature  is  much 
the  same  as  that  of  Serbia.  It  might  have  been  a 
risky  matter  transporting  a  mountain  people  to  the 
warm  climate  of  Algeria  or  Tunis. 

Then  the  future  operations  of  the  Serbian  troops 
had  to  be  kept  in  view.  It  was  clear  that  as  soon  as 
the  army  was  rested,  reorganized  and  re-equipped, 
it  would  again  take  the  field.  There  were  only  two 
possible  fields  of  action,  Albania  or  Salonica.  Under 
those  circumstances  it  was  desirable  to  keep  the 
Serbian  Army  as  near  its  future  theatre  of  operations 
as  possible.  If  the  distance  to  be  covered  was  small 
a  small  fleet  of  transports  would  suffice,  as  the  same 
vessels  could  go  backwards  and  forwards  in  a  few 
hours.  If  the  army  had  tO'  be  brought  from  Algeria 
or  Tunis,  a  large  fleet  of  transports  would  be  neces- 
sary, and  this  would  increase  the  cost,  the  loss  of  time 
and  the  risk  of  attack  from  submarines. 

As  soon,  therefore,  as  it  was  decided  to  transport 
the  Serbian  Army  to  Corfu  no  time  was  lost  in  carry- 
ing out  the  operation.  A  large  fleet  of  transports  at 
once  took  the  work  in  hand.  An  Italian  force  was 
sent  to  Durazzo  to  protect  that  town  against  attack, 
while  the  embarkation  was  going  on.  A  part  of  the 
Serbian  Army  at  Durazzo  descended  the  coast  to 
Valona.  The  embarkation  was  made  from  three  ports, 
San  Giovanni  di  Medua,  Durazzo  and  Valona.    Not 


The  Evacuation  of  Albania      199 

only  were  the  troops  transported,  but  several  thousand 
horses  were  brought  away  safely. 

British,  French  and  Italian  vessels  took  part  in 
conveying  the  troops,  while  the  warships  of  the  three 
Powers  policed  the  Adriatic  with  such  success  that  the 
Austrian  submarines  were  kept  at  a  respectful  dis- 
tance. But  it  became  clear  that  Essad  Pasha  and  his 
troops  would  also  have  to  leave  Albania,  as  the  Bul- 
garians and  Austrians  were  now  converging  on 
Durazzo  from  all  sides.  After  the  Italian  troops  had 
successfully  covered  the  embarkation  at  Durazzo  they 
had  themselves  to  beat  a  retreat  to  Valona. 

All  these  difficult  and  delicate  operations  were  suc- 
cessfully carried  out,  and  though  the  Austrians  and 
Bulgarians  became  masters  of  all  Albania,  they  failed 
in  their  principal  object,  the  surrounding  and  capture 
of  the  Serbian  Army.  A  part  of  their  forces  advanced 
as  far  as  Valona,  but  that  town  had  little  difficulty  in 
defending  itself.  The  invading  force  was  unable  to 
bring  any  artillery,  beyond  mountain  and  machine 
guns,  across  the  mountains,  so  that  it  could  not  under- 
take an  attack  on  a  town  defended  by  heavy  Italian 
batteries  brought  by  sea  from  Italy. 

The  Italians  need  not  have  had  any  anxiety  regard- 
ing the  Austrian  and  Bulgarian  occupation  of  Albania, 
as  this  would  come  automatically  to  an  end  as  soon 
as  the  expeditionary  force  at  Salonica  successfully 
invaded  Bulgaria.  That  day  the  Bulgarians  were 
forced  to  evacuate  Albania,  and  even  do  it  hurriedly, 
if  they  did  not  want  to  find  themselves  cut  off  from 
all  return  to  Bulgaria. 


200       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

The  day  this  happened  the  Austrians  had  to  evacu- 
ate the  country,  as  they  had  lines  of  communication  to 
guard  running  from  Bosnia  to  \'alona,  through  a  ter- 
ritory which  has  no  railways  and  few  roads.  Fifty 
per  cent,  of  the  population  was  absolutely  hostile  to 
them.  Even  the  Catholic  part  of  Albania  was  only 
pro-Austrian  as  long  as  the  Dual  Monarchy  sub- 
sidized it,  and  would  under  no  circumstances  have 
taken  up  arms  in  defence  of  Austrian  interests  against 
a  foreign  foe. 


CHAPTER  XVII 

THE   SERBIAN    ARMY    AT    CORFU 

ONCE  it  had  been  decided  to  transfer  the 
Serbian  Army  to  Corfu,  preparations  had  to 
be  made  with  all  haste  to  receive  it.  It  was  no  small 
matter  to  convey  over  a  hundred  thousand  soldiers, 
with  all  that  remained  of  their  horses,  mountain  gims, 
machine  guns  and  impedimenta  of  all  descriptions,  in 
a  country  denuded  of  good  roads,  to  three  open  road- 
steads, and  then  embark  them  on  transports.  It  must 
be  remembered  that  this  had  to  be  done  under  the 
constant  menace  of  attack  by  the  Austrian  Army  in 
Montenegro  and  the  Bulgarian  troops  at  El-Bassan. 

But  not  only  was  it  necessary  to  embark  them  in 
Albania,  preparations  had  to  be  made  for  receiving 
them  at  Corfu.  Corfu  is  an  island  of  100,000  in- 
habitants, and  possesses  only  such  resources  as  are 
required  for  their  daily  necessities.  It  is  needless  to 
say  that  it  was  out  of  the  question  to  call  upon  the 
authorities  or  the  population  to  provide  even  a  tenth 
of  the  provisions  necessary  for  the  maintenance  of 
the  Serbian  Army.  It  would  have  been  a  poor 
exchange  to  save  them  from  starvation  in  Albania  to 
allow  them  to  die  of  hunger  in  Corfu. 

The  solution  of  the  problem  was  left  in  the  hands 


202       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

of  the  French  Commanders,  General  de  Mondesir  and 
Admiral  de  Gueydon,  and  the  French  Minister,  M. 
Boissonnais.  Two  bases  were  organized,  a  maritime 
base  and  a  land  base.  The  task  of  the  former  was 
to  bring  the  Serbian  troops  on  shore  as  fast  as  the 
transports  arrived,  and  also  to  land  the  enormous 
mass  of  provisions  and  merchandise  of  all  kinds  sent 
from  France  and  England.  The  harbour  of  Corfu 
presented  a  sight  such  as  had  never  been  seen  in  its 
history. 

Scores  of  transports  with  the  troops  arrived  daily 
and  tramp  steamers  of  every  sort  and  size  crowded 
the  roads.  The  first  great  difficulty  was  the  want  of 
boats  of  all  kinds,  for  landing  men  and  goods.  Those 
that  the  port  possessed  in  ordinary  times  were,  of 
course,  totally  insufficient.  But  the  sailor  has  the  repu- 
tation of  being  the  "handy  man"  able  to  make  use  of 
the  most  unpromising  material.  The  French  Man-o'- 
War  man  is  little  behind  his  British  comrade  in  this 
respect.  Admiral  de  Gueydon's  men  showed  them- 
selves full  of  resource  and  ingenuity.  Everything  that 
would  float  was  pressed  into  service,  ships'  boats, 
barges,  fishing  vessels,  skif¥s,  and  even  rafts.  So  well 
did  they  work  that  they  were  soon  able  to  disembark 
20,000  men  a  day  with  1,200  tons  of  provisions. 

The  tours  de  force  realized  by  the  maritime  base 
inspired  the  land  base  with  healthy  emulation.  In  fact, 
all  through  this  difficult  period  the  military,  naval  and 
civil  authorities  worked  hand  in  hand  for  the  common 
aim,  the  prompt  succour  of  the  Serbian  Army.  Red 
tape  was  reduced  to  a  minimum.   General  de  Mondesir, 


The  Serbian  Army  at  Corfu    203 

Admiral  de  Gueydon  and  M.  Boissonnais  held  a  daily 
conference.  This  daily  exchange  of  views  suppressed 
all  necessity  for  reports,  letters,  and  useless  cor- 
respondence which  would  have  only  delayed  and  com- 
plicated the  work  on  hand. 

The  first  duty  of  the  land  base  was  to  assure  a 
supply  of  bread.  There  was  no  want  of  flour,  as 
large  cargoes  had  been  sent  from  France.  But  it  was 
not  sufficient  to  have  flour,  it  was  also  necessary  to 
find  a  means  of  baking  it.  The  first  difficulty  was  to 
find  wood  to  heat  the  ovens.  Corfu  is  rich  in  olive  and 
orange  trees,  but  it  is  not  with  such  wood  that  fires  can 
be  made.  As  a  first  step  the  land  base  requisitioned  all 
the  available  private  ovens.  Then  a  couple  of  com- 
panies of  engineers  set  to  work  to  construct  field 
bakeries.  Ships  were  sent  off  to  Epirus  to  purchase 
wood  from  the  Greeks.  But  until  their  return  and 
until  all  the  baking  organization  was  completed,  bread 
rations  had  to  be  distributed  with  a  certain  parsimony. 

In  a  day  or  two's  time,  however,  all  difficulties 
were  overcome,  and  two  field  bakeries  of  :i^2  ovens 
each,  employing  490  men,  were  at  work  night  and 
day.  Each  oven  furnished  120  three-pound  loaves 
every  two  hours,  or  240  rations,  as  each  soldier 
received  a  pound  and  a  half  of  bread  each  day.  The 
64  ovens  therefore  furnished  more  than  sufficient  to 
feed  the  whole  Serbian  Army,  and  the  refugees  who 
had  accompanied  it. 

At  first  some  difficulty  was  experienced  with  the 
meat.     The    authorities    distributed,    with    laudable 


204       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

prodigality,  large  quantities  of  Australian  frozen  meat 
to  the  starving  troops.  But  the  Serbian  soldier  had 
never  seen  frozen  meat  in  his  life,  and  as  the  author- 
ities omitted  to  give  them  directions  for  unfreezing  it, 
he  simply  threw  it  into  boiling  water  and  proceeded 
to  cook  it.  When  the  meat  was  taken  out  it  was 
found  to  resemble  a  section  of  a  pneumatic  tyre,  and 
proved  just  about  as  digestible.  This  caused  not  a 
little  perturbation  in  the  camps,  till  it  was  explained 
to  the  men  that  frozen  meat  must  first  gradually  thaw 
and  return  to  its  normal  condition  before  any  attempt 
is  made  to  cook  it. 

Of  course  the  organization  of  the  various  camps 
was  not  an  affair  of  hours  or  even  days.  The  weather 
at  first  was  most  unfavourable,  to  an  extent  that 
caused  great  doubt  as  to  the  wisdom  of  choosing 
Corfu  as  a  reorganization  base.  During  the  first  few 
weeks  it  rained  with  persistence  and  a  force  that  might 
have  rendered  a  seal  anxious.  The  unfortunate  Serbs 
had  no  tents,  and  such  huts  as  they  were  able  to  con- 
struct were  a  poor  protection  against  the  torrential 
downpour.     If  it  was  not  raining  it  was  hailing. 

The  result  was  that  the  various  camps  became  seas 
of  mud,  while  the  roads  began  to  give  way  under 
the  excessive  strain  imposed  upon  them  by  the  mass 
of  traffic  between  the  camps  and  the  port.  All  this 
imposed  fresh  work  on  the  officers  and  men  conduct- 
ing the  various  operations  and  assuring  the  provision- 
ing and  equipping  of  the  troops.  It  also  hampered 
considerably  the  training  of  the  recruits. 


The  Serbian  Army  at  Corfu     205 

The  Serbian  soldiers,  too,  were  badly  clothed  to 
meet  such  inclement  weather.  Their  un forms  were 
in  rags  and  their  footwear  for  the  most  part  in  a 
lamentable  condition.  There  were  large  numbers  of 
new  uniforms  and  boots  sent  from  France  and  Eng- 
land, but  it  was  not  possible  to  begin  the  distribution 
till  the  men  were  organized  into  regular  military  units, 
sections,  companies,  battalions  and  regiments. 

The  new  unifonns  for  the  Serbian  Army  were  sent 
from  France  and  England,  while  the  new  footwear 
had  been  purchased  in  the  United  States.  As  soon  as 
the  army  had  received  its  new  equipment,  the  various 
units  were  at  once  formed,  and  the  reorganization  of 
the  mass  of  men  as  a  fighting  machine  was  begun. 

Of  course  the  length  of  time  required  for  the  recon- 
stitution  of  the  units  was  not  great  in  the  case  of  men 
who  had  already  served,  and  possessed  a  military  in- 
struction. But  with  the  army  were  thousands  of  young 
men  of  the  new  "classe"  who  were  totally  untrained. 
These,  after  they  had  rested  from  the  hardships 
they  had  undergone  during  the  retreat,  had  to  be 
clothed,  armed  and  instructed.  The  army  was  further 
without  artillery  or  means  of  transport,  as  all  guns 
and  wheeled  vehicles  had  had  to  be  destroyed  before 
it  left  Serbian  soil.  All  that  it  possessed  were  the 
officers'  chargers  and  several  thousand  cavalry  and 
pack-horses  that  had  served  to  carry  provisions  during 
the  retreat  across  the  mountains.  There  were  also  a 
number  of  mountain  batteries  and  machine  gun  sec- 
tions with  their  mules. 


2o6       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

It  speaks  well  for  the  quality  of  the  Serbian  soldier 
that  by  the  month  of  April  certain  units  were  again 
thoroughly  reconstituted  and  were  sent  off  to  Salonica 
to  take  their  place  in  the  fighting-line. 


PART  II 

THE  CAMPAIGN  ON  THE  SALONICA  FRONT 


TO 

L.  L.  C. 


Washington,  D.  C. 
November,     1919. 


INTRODUCTION 

DURING  the  world-war  just  terminated,  with  its 
clash  of  peoples  on  a  score  of  fronts,  it  was 
difficult  for  the  public  to  follow  the  various  phases 
and  realize  their  relative  importance.  Military  tactics 
and  strategy  were  often  divorced  from  policy,  with 
the  result  that  the  co-ordination  of  the  effort  suffered, 
and  the  war,  instead  of  being  waged  by  the  Allies  as 
a  whole  on  a  well-defined  plan,  was  split  up  into  a 
series  of  water-tight  compartments,  each  of  which  was 
regarded  by  those  fighting  in  it  as  the  crucial  one  for 
the  decision  of  the  whole  war.  Some  fronts  were 
given  undue  prominence,  others  excited  little  or  no 
interest. 

An  example  of  the  latter  was  the  Salonica  front. 
The  Army  of  the  Orient  was  the  Cinderella  of  the 
Allies,  as  far  as  treatment  was  concerned.  This  front 
was  in  certain  quarters  regarded  as  one  of  merely 
secondary  importance.   The  Army  of  the  Orient,  under  / 

the  command  of  General  Sarrail,  was  considered  to 
have  the  mission  of  holding  the  line  from  Monastir 
to  the  Aegean,  so  as  to  exercise  pressure  on  the  Ger- 
man, Austrian,  Bulgarian  and  Turkish  forces  defend- 
ing it,  immobilize  them  and  prevent  their  utilization 
elsewhere.  But  there  was  no  intention  of  so  reinforc- 
ing the  Allied  Army  as  to  permit  of  it  undertaking  an 


212       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

energetic  offensive  and,  coiite  que  coute,  cutting  the 
Berlin-Constantinople  Railway. 

This  was,  however,  a  completely  false  conception 
of  the  mission  of  the  Army  of  the  Orient.  The 
Salonica  front  was  not  one  of  secondary  importance ; 
it  was  a  front  of  capital  importance.  On  no  other  front 
would  such  immense  and  far-reaching  effects,  military 
and  political,  have  resulted  from  a  successful  offensive. 

In  stating  this  I  am  not  expressing  a  merely 
personal  opinion.  During  the  eighteen  months  I  spent 
with  the  Headquarters  Staff  of  the  Serbian  Army,  I 
had  continual  opportunity  of  discussing  with  officers 
of  the  highest  rank  the  importance  of  the  whole 
Balkan  front,  and  in  the  ten  months  I  passed  on  the 
Salonica  front,  of  discussing  the  real  mission  of  the 
Army  of  the  Orient.  I  found  them  unanimous  in  their 
opinion  as  to  the  importance  of  the  operations  in 
Macedonia. 

In  their  opinion,  the  objective  of  the  Army  of  the 
Orient  was  the  cutting  of  the  Berlin-Constantinople 
Railway.  It  was  notorious  that  Germany  drew  im- 
mense resources  from  Asia  Minor,  and  that  Bulgaria 
and  Serbia  were  also  laid  under  contribution.  A 
swarm  of  German  officials  had  been  sent  down  to 
these  countries,  which  had  been  cut  up  into  sections 
like  a  chessboard,  and  were  swept  clean  of  every- 
thing that  could  be  made  use  of.  All  day  and  every 
day  trains  filled  with  food  were  rolling  up  to  Ger- 
many from  the  Balkan  States  and  Asia  Minor,  while 
the  trains  travelling  from  Germany  to  Constantinople 
were  filled  with  munitions,  without  which  the  resist- 


Introduction  213 

ance  of  Turkey  to  the  British  and  Russian  Armies 
would  at  once  have  collapsed. 

The  possession  of  the  Berlin-Constantinople  Rail- 
road further  assured  the  Central  Powers  the  master}^ 
of  the  Dardanelles.  As  Germany  controlled  the 
entrances  to  the  Baltic,  Russia  was  practically  isolated 
from  her  Allies.  The  only  means  they  had  of  forward- 
ing war  material  to  her  was  zna  Vladivostok  or  Arch- 
angel. In  other  words  "Mittel-Europa"  was  realized 
and  a  situation  created  which,  if  it  could  have  been 
made  permanent,  would  have  assured  to  Germany  the 
domination  of  Europe,  the  first  step  to  world 
dominion. 

There  is  not  the  slightest  doubt  but  that  the  cutting 
of  the  railway  would  have  brought  about  the  im- 
mediate collapse  of  Turkey.  This  would  have  meant 
the  reopening  of  the  Dardanelles,  the  reprovisioning 
of  Russia,  then  still  in  the  field,  with  munitions,  of 
which  she  was  sorely  in  need,  and  the  delivery  to  the 
Allies  of  the  immense  quantities  of  food  stuffs  ac- 
cumulated in  Southern  Russia  after  the  closing  of  the 
Straits.  At  the  same  time  the  collapse  of  Turkey  as  a 
military  Power  would  have  set  free  the  British  armies 
in  Egypt,  Mesopotamia  and  Palestine  and  the  Russian 
army  in  the  Caucasus  for  service  elsewhere. 

The  appearance  of  the  Allied  fleets  in  the  Black  Sea 
would  undoubtedly  have  called  a  halt  to  the  intrigue 
of  the  pro-German  court  camarilla  surrounding  the 
Czar  and  even  if  the  Russian  revolution  had  taken 
place,  the  Kerensky  army,  as  a  "force  in  being,"  would 
have  been  maintained,  Bolshevism  would  have  been 


214       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

nipped  in  the  bud  and  the  whole  course  of  the  war 
might  have  been  changed.  The  failure  to  recognize 
these  elementary  truths  constitutes  the  second  capital 
error  of  the  Allies  in  the  Balkans  and  undoubtedly- 
prolonged  the  war  by  at  least  two  years. 

Once  Bulgaria  and  Turkey  were  disposed  of,  the 
Army  of  the  Orient  could  have  reoccupied  Serbia, 
moved  on  the  Danube  and  threatened  Budapest.  The 
Hungarian  capital  would  then  have  been  menaced 
from  three  sides — from  the  Danube,  from  the  Rou- 
manian front  and  by  the  Russian  Army  then  operating 
in  the  Bukavina.  The  country  around  Budapest  being 
one  immense  plain,  on  which  there  are  no  fortresses 
of  any  importance,  the  defence  of  the  capital  would 
have  been  most  difficult,  and  would  have  called  for  an 
immense  number  of  men,  which  Austria  at  that  mo- 
ment did  not  possess. 

The  chief  arguments  of  the  opponents  of  the 
Salonica  front  were  ( i )  the  excessive  demands  it 
made  on  tonnage,  (2)  the  difficulties  of  communi- 
cation, and  (3)  the  mountainous  nature  of  the 
country. 

The  excessive  demands  made  on  tonnage  for  the 
transport  of  troops  and  war  material  was  due  to  the 
failure  of  the  Allies  to  utilize  all  the  means  of  trans- 
port at  their  disposal.  For  eighteen  long  months  they 
only  made  use  of  the  sea  route.  As  a  transport  steam- 
ing at  ten  knots  (the  speed  imposed  on  it  by  the 
scarcity  of  coal)  took  ten  days  to  make  the  voyage 
from  Marseilles  to  Salonica,  a  ship  could  only  deliver 
a  cargo  per  month.     At  the  same  time  the  Mediter- 


Introduction  215 

ranean  and  the  Aegean  were  swarming  with  subma- 
rines and  a  large  proportion  of  the  transports  were 
sunk.  It  was  only  in  December,  1917,  that  some  one 
in  the  War  Office  in  London  perceived  that  if  troops 
and  stores  were  forwarded  by  land  tO'  Taranto  in  the 
South  of  Italy,  they  could  be  shipped  over  to  Greece 
in  a  single  night,  thus  avoiding  the  submarine  danger. 
One  ship  going  backwards  and  forward  between  Italy 
and  the  Greek  ports  could  therefore  do  the  work  of  ten 
running  from  Marseilles  to  Salonica. 

As  soon  as  this  was  realized  a  clause  giving  the 
Allies  the  right  to  disembark  troops  and  stores  at  Itea, 
the  Greek  railhead  in  the  Gulf  of  Lepanto,  whence  they 
could  be  forwarded  by  rail  to  Salonica,  was  inserted 
in  one  of  the  many  ultimata  sent  to  King  Constantine. 
The  Italians  also  constructed  a  "route  Carossable" 
from  Santi  Quaranta  to  Monastir,  a  marvel  of  military 
engineering,  by  which  they  were  able  to  send  thousands 
of  tons  a  day  of  war  material  by  motor-truck. 

As  regards  the  second  difficulty — the  means  of  com- 
munication in  Macedonia  itself — an  immense  improve- 
ment had  been  made.  When  the  expeditionary  force 
first  landed,  in  1915,  there  were  only  three  lines  of 
railway — and  these  single  track — and  such  roads  as 
had  existed  under  the  Turkish  regime.  But  the  three 
hundred  thousand  men  composing  General  Sarrail's 
force,  reinforced  by  thousands  of  Macedonian  peas- 
ants, in  less  than  a  year  and  a  half,  constructed  thou- 
sands of  kilometres  of  roads  and  hundreds  of  kilo- 
metres of  light  railways. 

Mountains,  on  which  a  year  before  only  sheep  tracks 


2i6       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

existed,  were  made  accessible  to  heavy  guns.  An  im- 
mense amount  of  motor  transport  was  accumulated, 
and  hundreds  of  thousands  of  pack  animals  were  at  the 
disposal  of  the  Allied  Army.  The  Army  of  General 
Sarrail  was,  therefore,  if  reinforced,  in  a  position  to 
undertake  a  successful  offensive.  The  Serbian  ad- 
vanced lines  were  in  January,  19 17,  only  a  matter  of 
eighty  miles  from  Nish,  one  of  the  principal  stations  of 
the  Berlin-Constantinople  Railway. 

The  third  objection — the  mountainous  nature  of  the 
country — was  greatly  exaggerated.  It  did  not  offer,  as 
I  will  show  in  a  subsequent  chapter,  any  insuperable 
obstacle  to  military  operations.  The  brilliant  cam- 
paign of  Field  Marshal  Mishitch,  which  culminated  in 
the  capture  of  Monastir,  is  a  proof  of  this.  He  at- 
tacked, with  inferior  numbers,  an  enemy  intrenched  in 
most  formidable  mountain  strongholds  and  drove  them 
from  one  position  after  another.  In  fact  the  superior 
skill  of  the  Serbians  in  mountain  fighting  gave  them  a 
distinct  advantage  over  the  Germans  in  a  country  like 
the  Balkans.  The  knowledge  of  the  country  enabled 
them  to  seize  advantages  to  outmanoeuvre  an  enemy 
who  was  not  accustomed  to  that  kind  of  warfare.  It 
may  further  be  argued  that  in  no  country  has  there 
ever  been  so  much  fighting  as  in  the  Balkans. 

The  mountainous  nature  of  the  country  did  not  pre- 
vent the  States  composing  the  Balkan  League  from  in- 
flicting, in  1912,  a  crushing  defeat  on  Turkey;  neither 
did  it  prevent  the  German-Austrian-Bulgarian  Armies 
in  191 5  from  driving  the  Serbian  Army  into  Albania. 
On  that  occasion,  as  I  have  described  in  the  first  sec- 


Introduction  217 

tion  of  this  book,  two  hundred  and  fifty  thousand  Serbs 
resisted  the  invasion  of  seven  hundred  and  fifty  thou- 
sand Germans,  Austrians  and  Bulgarians  for  over  two 
months.  The  fact  that  they  were  able  to  do  so  is  only 
attributable  to  their  superior  skill  in  this  kind  of  war- 
fare. 

But  the  Salonica  front  had  not  only  immense  mili- 
tary importance,  its  naval  value  could  hardly  be  over- 
estimated : — by  this  I  mean  its  naval  value  to  the 
enemy.  If,  by  any  chance,  the  Germans  and  their 
allies  had  driven  the  Army  of  the  Orient  out  of  Salon- 
ica and  seized  the  city  and  bay,  the  effect  would  have 
been  simply  catastrophic. 

The  port  of  Salonica  is  one  of  the  most  magnificent 
in  the  world ;  a  land-locked  harbour  miles  in  extent,  in 
which  the  navies  of  the  world  could  lie  at  anchor.  If 
this  had  fallen  into  the  hands  of  the  Germans,  they 
would  at  once  have  formed  it  into  a  submarine  base  of 
the  most  formidable  kind.  Then  would  have  followed 
the  invasion  of  Greece.  Once  the  Germans  were  in 
firm  possession  of  that  country,  they  would  have  es- 
tablished other  submarine  bases  in  the  rocky  and  in- 
dented coast  line  of  Greece,  and  in  the  hundreds  of 
islands  forming  the  Archipelago.  Once  they  were 
firmly  established  there  the  task  of  driving  them  out 
would  have  been  one  of  superhuman  difficulty. 

The  result  would  have  been  that  hundreds  of  sub- 
marines and  submarine  mine-layers  would  have  been 
let  loose  in  the  Aegean  and  the  Mediterranean.  It 
would  have  been  perfectly  possible  for  them  to  have 
stopped  all  traffic  by  the  Suez  Canal,  thereby  cutting 


2i8       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

Great  Britain  off  from  direct  communication  with 
India,  and  depriving  the  large  British  Army  holding 
Egypt  from  receiving  supplies  and  munitions.  The  at- 
tack by  the  Turks  on  the  Suez  Canal  would  then  un- 
doubtedly have  been  resumed,  as  the  difficulty  of  pro- 
viding the  army  defending  Egypt  with  munitions 
would  have  rendered  the  chances  of  success  more  than 
probable. 

Under  these  circumstances,  the  Suez  Canal  being 
put  out  of  commission,  the  Germans  would  have  left 
no  stone  unturned  to  bring  about  trouble  in  British 
India.  That  this  was  their  programme  is  proved  by  the 
prosecution  of  Hindoo  conspirators  held  in  19 17  in  San 
Francisco.  With  the  Suez  Canal  cut,  the  only  means 
of  communication  between  Great  Britain  and  India 
would  have  been  the  long  and  difficult  voyage  zna  the 
Cape  of  Good  Hope. 

It  was  therefore,  for  the  Allies,  a  life  and  death 
question  not  only  to  maintain  themselves  in  force  on 
the  Salonica  front,  but  it  was  also  of  highest  impor- 
tance that  this  front  should  be  so  reinforced  as  to  allow 
the  Army  of  the  Orient  to  take  an  energetic  offensive 
and  cut  the  Berlin-Constantinople  line. 

There  was,  in  addition,  the  danger  that  the  Russian 
collapse  might  any  day  set  free  some  hundreds  of 
thousands  of  German  troops  for  service  in  the  Balkans. 
There  is  no  doubt  that  the  Grand  General  Staff  at 
Berlin  was  thoroughly  alive  to  the  immense  results 
which  would  follow  from  successful  operations  at 
Salonica ;  in  fact,  the  loss  of  Salonica  would  have  been 
irreparable.    Once  Germany  was  master  of  the  Aegean 


Introduction  219 

and  the  Mediterranean,  victory  for  her  would  be  in 
sight.  That  the  Gennan  Grand  General  Staff  did  not 
undertake  these  operations  only  proves  how  hard 
pressed  it  was  on  other  fronts.  This  renders  the 
failure  of  the  Allies  to  realize  their  opportunity  all  the 
more  inexcusable. 

On  the  Salonica  front  the  only  possible  policy  was 
therefore  an  energetic  offensive.  But  in  certain  British 
circles  it  was  argued  that  this  front  could  perfectly  well 
fulfil  its  mission  by  simply  defending  the  entrenched 
camp  of  Salonica.  This,  supported  by  the  guns  of  the 
fleet,  was,  they  declared,  impregnable. 

There  could  be  no  greater  error.  Any  abandonment 
of  the  line  running  from  the  Albanian  frontier  across 
the  plain  of  Monastir  and  along  the  Moglene  mountain 
range  to  Lake  Doiran  and  the  Struma  valley  would 
have  been  disastrous.  It  would  have  permitted  the 
German  troops  and  their  allies  to  seize  Greece  and 
threaten  Salonica  both  by  land  and  sea.  Once  masters 
of  Greece,  Germany  would  have  had  little  difficulty  in 
rendering  the  access  to  Salonica  by  sea  or  land  either 
impossible  or  a  matter  of  extreme  difficulty. 

The  entrenched  camp  could  have  been  closely  in- 
vested until  such  time  as  the  Germans  and  their  allies 
had  established  themselves  solidly  in  Greece  and  Greek 
Macedonia  and  concentrated  overwhelmingly  superior 
forces  for  an  attack.  With  the  Aegean  Sea  swanuing 
with  hostile  submarines  the  position  of  the  force  de- 
fending the  entrenched  camp  would  have  been  precari- 
ous in  the  extreme.  The  prize  was  too  great  for  the 
Germans  not  to  put  forward  every  effort  to  win  it. 


220       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

Such  a  policy  would  have  cut  off  all  communication 
between  the  Italian  force  in  Albania  and  the  Army  of 
the  Orient.  Shortly  after  the  capture  of  Monastir  the 
liaison  was  successfully  established  between  the  Italian 
armi  of  occupation  in  Albania  and  the  forces  of  Gen- 
eral Sarrail,  so  that  the  fighting  line  was  practically 
continuous  from  Valona  on  the  Adriatic  to  the  Gulf 
of  Cavalla  on  the  Aegean.  The  successful  expulsion 
of  the  Germans  and  Bulgarians  from  Greek  Macedonia 
entailed  ten  months  of  hard  fighting  and  cost  the  Army 
of  the  Orient  forty  thousand  men.  Its  abandonment 
would  have  meant  the  loss  of  thousands  of  kilometres 
of  i-oads  and  hundreds  of  kilometres  of  light  railways 
constructed  at  a  cost  of  millions  of  dollars.  In  addi- 
tion the  unfortunate  population  would  have  been  de- 
livered over  to  the  tender  mercies  of  a  ruthless  and 
cruel  enemy. 

No  more  suicidal  policy  could,  therefore,  have  been 
imagined  than  any  abandonment  of  the  conquered  ter- 
ritory by  the  Allies  and  the  idea  of  confining  the  task 
of  the  Army  of  the  Orient  to  the  defence  of  the  en- 
trenched camp  was  in  the  opinion  of  all  competent 
authorities  on  the  spot  with  whom  I  discussed  the  ques- 
tion, strategically  and  tactically  unsound. 

But  the  months  passed  and  nothing  was  done.  The 
only  momentary  act  of  energy  was  the  brilliant  six 
weeks'  campaign  of  Field  Marshal  Mishitch  which  re- 
sulted in  the  capture  of  Monastir.  But  as  he  possessed 
no  reserves  he  was  unable  to  follow  up  his  victory. 
Not  only  did  the  British  Government  refuse  to  send 
reinforcements  but  the  Army  of  the  Orient  was  melt- 


Introduction  221 

ing  away  as  the  result  of  the  ravages  of  malaria.  The 
armies  sweltering  on  the  plains  round  Salonica  fell 
victim  to  it  by  tens  of  thousands.  At  one  time  there 
were  not  hospital  ships  enough  to  repatriate  the  sick. 

In  the  early  months  of  1917,  I  had  occasion  to  visit 
Paris  and  London  and  made  it  my  business  to  find  out 
the  views  of  the  French  and  British  statesmen  regard- 
ing the  Salonica  front.  In  Paris  I  had  long  conversa- 
tions with  M.  Briand,  then  Prime  Minister,  M. 
Stephen  Pichon,  the  present  Minister  of  Foreign  Af- 
fairs, General  Malterre,  the  famous  French  military 
writer,  and  a  score  or  so'  of  other  public  men  and  sol- 
diers. I  found  them  unanimous  in  favor  of  an  ener- 
getic offensive  on  the  Salonica  front  and  equally 
unanimous  in  deploring  the  shortsightedness  of  the 
British  military  authorities. 

When  I  spoke  with  M.  Briand  and  urged  the  im- 
portance of  the  Salonica  front  he  replied  to  me:  "My 
dear  Mr.  Gordon  Smith,  you  are  preaching  to  the  con- 
verted. It  was  I  who  sent  the  Army  of  the  Orient  to 
Salonica  and  who  have  kept  it  there.  If  you  see  Mr. 
Lloyd  George  in  London  tell  him  from  me  that  M. 
Briand  is  more  convinced  than  ever  of  the  strategical 
and  political  importance  of  the  Salonica  front." 

A  week  later  I  was  in  London  and  found  myself 
face  to  face  with  a  stone  wall.  The  public  knew  noth- 
ing about  Salonica  and  cared  less.  The  "Daily  Mail" 
had  on  January  i8th  published  an  article  proposing 
purely  and  simply  to  withdraw  the  whole  army  from 
Salonica,  a  repetition  of  Gallipoli.  The  impression 
made  in  Paris  by  this  article  was  simply  disastrous,  so 


222       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

much  so,  that  the  censor  "got  busy"  and  issued  a  stern 
warning  to  the  press  to  abstain  from  discussing  the 
situation  in  Salonica. 

The  mihtary  censorship  would  allow  no  discussion 
of  the  situation  in  the  Balkans.  All  the  correspond- 
ents of  London  journals  were  expelled  from  Salonica 
with  the  exception  of  Mr.  Ward  Price,  correspondent 
of  the  Newspapers  Proprietors  Association  (a  syndi- 
cate of  the  London  journals)  and  Mr.  Ferguson  of 
Reuters  Agency.  As  all  their  dispatches  were  strictly 
censored  first  in  Salonica  and  a  second  time  in  London 
no  news  of  any  importance  was  allowed  to  transpire 
and  the  word  Salonica  had  practically  disappeared 
from  the  columns  of  the  London  press.  It  was  openly 
declared  that  it  was  on  the  Western  front  alone  that 
the  war  would  be  decided  and  no  discussion  of  this 
theory  was  permitted. 

After  a  number  of  conversations  with  Lord  North- 
cliffe,  I  obtained  his  permission  to  state  the  case  for 
Salonica  in  a  letter  to  the  Editor  of  the  "Times." 
This  I  did  in  terms  of  extreme  moderation  but  was 
informed  two  days  later  that  it  had  been  suppressed 
by  the  censor  from  the  first  line  to  the  last  and 
returned  to  the  "Times"  with  the  orders  "not  to  be 
published"  stamped  on  every  page. 

This  was,  of  course,  in  the  days  before  General 
Foch  had  been  given  supreme  command  and  entrusted 
with  the  direction  of  the  whole  war.  General  Sir  Wil- 
liam Robertson,  Chief  of  the  Imperial  Staff,  and  all 
the  men  surrounding  him  were  out-and-out  "West- 
erners"   and   refused   to    listen   to    any   proposals   to 


Introduction  223 

undertake  an  offensive  elsewhere.  As  a  result  the 
Army  of  the  Orient,  its  ranks  ravaged  by  malaria,  due 
to  the  failure  to  advance  out  of  the  swampy  plains 
surrounding  Salonica,  was  melting  away  uselessly  in 
complete  inaction.  It  was  an  open  secret  that  in  Eng- 
land the  military  men  had  completely  got  the  upper 
hand  and  had  seized  not  only  the  military  but  also 
the  political  conduct  of  the  war.  The  War  Office  and 
the  Foreign  Office  were  at  daggers  drawn.  The  Im- 
perial General  Stafif  turned  a  deaf  ear  to  all  counsels 
which  did  not  square  with  their  preconceived  views. 
It  was  only  after  weeks  and  weeks  of  sapping  and 
mining  that  the  civil  power  was  able  to  assert  itself 
once  more.  Mr.  Lloyd  George  planned  in  secret  the 
organization  of  the  Supreme  War  Council  in  Ver- 
sailles. When  its  creation  was  intimated  to  General 
Sir  William  Robertson  he  at  once,  in  protest,  tendered 
his  resignation  which  (probably  much  to  his  sur- 
prise) was  promptly  accepted.  Colonel  Repington, 
the  military  writer  of  the  "Times,"  also  an  out-and- 
out  "Westerner"  to  whom  the  Salonica  front  was 
anathema,  rushed  to  the  assistance  of  his  chief  with 
such  a  want  of  moderation  of  language  that  he  was 
promptly  haled  before  the  courts  and  fined  £ioo  under 
the  Defence  of  the  Realm  Act.  Then  General  Maurice 
tried  his  little  coup  d'etat  and  when  the  steam  roller 
had  passed  over  him  also  the  power  of  the  Imperial 
General  Staff  to  impose  its  will  on  the  statesmen 
was  at  an  end.  Mr.  Lloyd  George  triumphed  and 
General  Foch  was  entrusted  with  the  supreme  direc- 
tion of  the  war.    The  result  was  a  complete  change 


224       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

of  policy  and  strategy  in  the  Balkans.  General  Sar- 
rail  was  recalled  and  replaced  by  General  Guillaumat, 
one  of  the  most  brilliant  commanders  from  the 
Western  front.  As  soon  as  he  had  the  Army  of  the 
Orient  reorganized  and  reinforced  General  Franchet 
d'Esperey,  the  commander  of  the  Fifth  French  Army 
Group,  was  sent  out  to  take  command  at  Salonica 
and  an  energetic  offensive  was  at  once  begun. 

As  before,  the  chief  attack  was  entrusted  to  the 
Serbian  Contingent  of  the  Army  of  the  Orient.  It 
attacked  with  splendid  clan  the  Bulgarian  entrench- 
ments on  the  Dobra  Polie,  drove  in  their  centre  and 
then  rolled  the  opposing  army  up  right  and  left. 
Through  the  breach  thus  made  poured  the  French 
and  British  contingents,  the  retreat  became  a  rout 
and  in  five  days  time  the  army  of  King  Ferdinand 
capitulated. 

The  Serbs  continued  their  triumphant  advance,  the 
Berlin-Constantinople  Railway  was  seized  and  the 
Danube  front  reached.  In  a  fortnight's  time  Turkey 
collapsed,  the  Dardanelles  were  opened  and  the  Allied 
fleets  entered  the  Black  Sea.  Austria,  menaced  by  the 
attack  of  the  victorious  Army  of  the  Orient,  saw  the 
game  was  up  and  sued  for  peace.  The  German 
Empire  was  therefore  menaced  from  the  rear.  Field 
Marshal  von  Hindenburg  saw  that  under  these  cir- 
cumstances nothing  could  save  the  situation  and 
begged  for  an  armistice.  Thus  the  war  which  began 
in  the  Balkans,  for  the  Balkans,  ended  in  the 
Balkans. 

That  this  would  have  been  the  inevitable  result  of 


Introduction  225 

an  energetic  offensive  had  long  been  clear  to  every- 
one on  the  spot  but  unfortunately  the  voices  of  those 
who  advocated  it  had  been  the  "voices  of  those  crying 
in  the  wilderness."  It  is  only  when  the  historian 
begins  a  detailed  study  of  the  world  war  in  all  its 
phases  that  the  astounding  errors  of  the  Entente  in 
its  Near  Eastern  policy  will  become  apparent. 

But  the  consequence  of  these  terrible  errors  was 
not  only  to  prolong  the  war  but  it  caused  unheard  of 
suffering  to  the  victims  of  these  errors.  What  Serbia 
suffered  is  indescribable.  Over  twenty-five  per  cent, 
of  her  population  succumbed,  her  territory  was  ruth- 
lessly plundered  and  she  has  piled  up  a  war  debt  that 
will  tax  her  economic  resources  to  the  uttermost  for 
many  a  day  to  come.  As  she  had  to  incur  this  debt 
mainly  through  the  incredible  blunders  of  the  states- 
men of  the  Entente  who  refused  to  listen  to  her  warn- 
ings, the  least  that  the  Allies  can  do  is  to  pass  all 
the  credits  with  which  they  supplied  Serbia  to  profit 
and  loss. 

In  the  following  pages  I  propose  to  give  an  account 
of  the  marvellous  services  rendered  to  the  Allied  cause 
by  the  Army  of  King  Peter. 


CHAPTER  I 

THE    FRANCO-BRITISH    OPERATIONS    ON    THE    SALONICA 

FRONT 

AS  my  main  object  in  this  volume  is  to  furnish 
a  description  of  the  role  played  by  Serbia  in 
the  World  War,  the  greatest  amount  of  space  will 
naturally  be  devoted  to  the  operations  of  the  army  of 
King  Peter. 

But  as  these  operations  were  only  the  continuation 
of  operations  already  begun  by  the  Franco-British 
force  under  the  command  of  General  Sarrail  (known 
as  the  Army  of  the  Orient)  we  must,  in  order  to 
completely  understand  the  role  of  this  army,  hark 
back  to  the  month  of  September,  19 15,  and  consider 
the  genesis  of  the  Salonica  front. 

The  creation  of  this  front  was  not  a  voluntary  act 
on  the  part  of  the  Entente  Powers.  It  was  imposed  on 
them  by  the  enemy.  Since  the  end  of  19 14  the  con- 
duct of  the  war  and  all  initiative  had  passed  into 
the  hands  of  the  Central  Powers.  This  was  inevitable 
owing  to  the  fashion  in  which  the  Allies  had  organ- 
ized the  conduct  of  the  war.  They  possessed  no  cen- 
tral authority,  no  common  council  empowered  to  carry 
on  the  war  as  a  whole. 

Each  time  some  German  success  placed  them  face 

226 


Operations  on  the  Salonica  Front  227 

to  face  with  a  fait  accompli  the  Powers  composing 
the  Quadruple  Alhance  began  hastily  to  take  council. 
Paris  consulted  London,  London  got  into  touch  with 
Petrograd  and  Petrograd  obtained  the  views  of  Rome. 
But  while  the  Allies  were  thus,  to  use  a  vulgar  but 
graphic  expression,  "'chewing  the  rag,"  events  were 
moving  swiftly.  The  contrast  in  the  enemy  camp  was 
complete.  There  the  will  of  the  Kaiser  was  the  only 
factor  that  counted.  When  he  pressed  the  button 
Vienna,  Sofia  and  Constantinople  moved  like  one  man. 
Napoleon  once  said  "I'  Autriche  est  toujours  en 
arriere,  d'  im  idee,  d'  une  annee,  d'  iin  corps  d' 
armee."  This  ironical  phrase  of  the  great  captain 
completely  describes  the  situation  and  policy  of  the 
Allies. 

When  therefore  in  September,  1915,  it  began  to 
dawn  on  the  statesmen  of  the  Entente  that  the  astute 
M.  Radoslavoff  and  his  still  more  astute  King  had 
been  fooling  them  they  began  hastily  to  cast  about 
to  repair  the  errors  committed.  Their  first  act  was 
to  get  into  communication  with  Greece  to  find  out 
the  attitude  and  policy  of  the  Athens  Government. 
Greece  had  an  offensive  and  defensive  treaty  of 
alliance  with  Serbia  according  to  which  Greece  was 
bound  to  come  to  the  latter  country's  aid  in  case  of 
an  attack  by  any  third  Power.  But  by  the  terms  of 
this  treaty  Serbia  undertook  to  put  150,000  men  on 
the  Serbo-Bulgarian  frontier.  As  it  was  obvious  that, 
in  view  of  the  impending  attack  by  Germany  and  Aus- 
tria on  the  Danube  front,  it  was  impossible  that  Serbia 


228       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

could  find  these  troops,  M.  Venizelos  suggested  that 
the  Allies  should  provide  them. 

To  this  the  Allies  consented  and  on  October,  19 15, 
began  disembarking  troops  at  Salonica.  At  the  same 
time  M.  Venizelos  ordered  the  mobilization  of  the 
Greek  army.  But  at  this  point  a  fresh  complication 
arose.  Though  Bulgaria  had  mobilized  her  army  she 
had  not  attacked  Serbia  so  that  the  casus  foederis 
provided  for  in  the  treaty  did  not  actually  exist  and 
Greece  was  still  nominally  neutral.  M.  Venizelos  was, 
therefore,  forced,  as  a  matter  of  form,  to  issue  a  pro- 
test against  the  landing  of  the  Franco-British  troops 
on  Greek  soil.  At  the  same  time  the  Greek  general 
commanding  at  Salonica — General  Moskhopoulos, — 
was  ordered  to  make  no  opposition  to  the  landing  but 
on  the  contrary  to  show  the  French  and  British  com- 
manders every  courtesy. 

But  both  the  Allies  and  M.  Venizelos  reckoned 
without  Greece's  pro-German  King.  A  week  later  he 
dismissed  M.  Venizelos  from  office  and  replaced  him 
by  M.  Zaimis,  who  was  pledged  to  a  repudiation  of 
the  Graeco-Serbian  Treaty  and  the  continuation  of  so 
called  neutrality  on  the  part  of  Greece.  At  the  same 
time  no  active  opposition  was  made  to  the  continued 
disembarkation  of  Franco-British  troops.  But  the 
succession  of  Greece  had  radically  changed  the  situa- 
tion. Instead  of  being  flanked  by  300,000  Greek  allied 
soldiers  the  handful  of  men  landed  (about  20,000) 
constituted  the  entire  force  that  was  to  save  Serbia. 
These  were  afterwards  reinforced  by  the  loth  British 
Division  from  Gallipoli,  13,000  men.    France  also  sent 


operations  on  the  Salonica  Front   229 

some  further  reinforcements  so  that  at  the  opening 
stage  of  the  campaign  the  army  under  General  Sar- 
rail  numbered  nearly  40,000  men. 

On  October  nth  actual  hostilities  began.  On  that 
date  Bulgarian  troops  under  General  Boyadzhiyefif 
crossed  the  Serbian  frontier  at  various  points  and  the 
Serbian  army,  which  was  resisting  the  fierce  attack 
of  the  Austro-Germans  on  the  Danube  front,  found 
themselves  taken  in  the  flank  by  overwhelmingly 
superior  forces.  The  first  object  of  the  Bulgarian 
army  was  to  cut  communications  between  Serbia  and 
Salonica.  This  was  accomplished  by  the  capture  on 
October  17th  of  Egri-Palanka  and  on  October  21st 
of  Varanje.  On  that  date  the  Serbian  Government 
and  the  foreign  legations  were  forced  to  leave  Nish 
for  Kraljevo. 

The  chief  objective  of  the  invading  Bulgarian  army 
was  the  capture  of  Uskub  (Skoplie).  The  strategic 
importance  of  Uskub  lies  in  the  fact  that  it  is  not 
only  the  principal  town  of  the  Vardar  Valley  but  it 
is  the  point  where  the  Salonica-Nish  railway  has  its 
junction  w^ith  the  branch  line  to  Mitrovitza,  in  the 
Sandjak  of  Novi-Bazaar,  on  which  the  Second  Serbian 
Army  was  retiring.  If  the  Franco-British  force  could 
have  captured  and  held  Uskub,  a  safe  line  of  retreat 
would  have  been  secured  for  the  Second  Serbian 
Army. 

But  it  was  not  to  be.  On  October  20th  General 
Todorofif  took  Veles  (Kuprulu)  and  two  days  later 
the  victorious  Bulgarian  army  entered  Uskub.  This 
placed  the  Serbian  forces  in  the  lower  Vardar  Sector 


230       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

in  a  perilous  position  and  forced  them  to  fall  back  on 
the  Babuna  Pass  which  commands  the  entrance  to  the 
Pelagonian  Plain  and  covers  the  towns  of  Prilep  and 
Monastir.  The  last  hope  of  the  Franco-British  force 
for  preventing  a  disaster  was  to  effect  a  junction  at 
Veles  between  the  Serbian  forces  operating  down  the 
Babuna  Pass  and  the  French  force  advancing  up  the 
Valley  of  the  Vardar.  If  Veles  could  have  been  won, 
the  Allies,  advancing  over  the  flat  plains  to  the  east 
of  the  Vardar,  known  as  the  Ovche  Polie,  would  have 
threatened  the  Bulgarian  communications  between 
Uskub  and  Kumanovo. 

The  attack  on  the  Krivolac-Veles  Sector  was  as- 
signed to  the  three  French  divisions  under  the  com- 
mand of  General  Sarrail.  The  guarding  of  the  rest 
of  the  Valley  of  the  Vardar  from  Krivolac  to  Salonica 
was  entrusted  to  the  small  British  force  under  General 
Sir  Bryan  Mohon.  On  October  27th  two  battalions 
of  the  loth  British  Division  moved  up  from  Salonica 
and  took  over  the  Kosturino — Lake  Doiran  front. 
The  same  day  the  French  entered  Krivolac  and  began 
the  advance  upstream  to  Gradsko. 

Little  hope  was  felt  however  of  reaching  Veles, 
the  difficulties  were  almost  unsurmountable.  If  this 
movement  failed  the  last  chance  of  establishing  con- 
tact with  the  Southern  Serbian  Army  was  through  the 
difficult  country  between  Krivolac  and  Prilep.  But 
first  of  all  the  position  at  Krivolac  itself  had  to  be 
assured.  This  was  rendered  difficult  by  the  fact  that 
the  enemy  kept  up  a  continuous  bombardment  from 
the  east  of  the  river,   Qn  October  30th  two  Bulgarian 


Operations  on  the  Salonica  Front   231 

battalions  attacked  the  bridgehead  on  the  left  bank, 
but  the  attack  was  not  pushed  home  and  was  easily 
repulsed.  The  French  pushed  forward  to  the  heights 
of  Kara  Hojjali  on  the  other  side  of  the  river  and 
held  them  against  repeated  attacks.  Four  days  later 
the  French  captured  the  bridges  over  the  Tcherna 
River.  A  week  later  these  detachments  pushed  across 
the  Tcherna  and  seized  the  villages  of  Krushevatz  and 
Orkva.  The  Bulgarians  made  desperate  but  vain 
efforts  to  recapture  these  positions,  losing  4000  men 
in  four  days.  The  French  continued  to  push  forward 
along  the  left  bank  of  the  Tcherna  and  seized  the 
lower  slopes  of  Mount  Archangel. 

The  Bulgarian  positions  were  so  seriously  menaced 
that  they  rushed  troops  from  Veles  to  the  threatened 
points,  the  49th  Reserve  Regiment,  the  3d  Macedonian 
Regiment  and  the  53d  Regiment  arriving  in  rapid 
succession.  Anglo-French  troops  sent  to  reinforce  the 
Serbians  holding  the  entrance  to  the  Babuna  Pass 
aided  them  to  repulse  a  Bulgarian'  attack  on  Iznor. 
But  with  this  effort  the  Allies  had  shot  their  bolt. 
Ever  increasing  pressure  from  the  Bulgarians  forced 
the  Serbians,  on  November  i6th,  to  fall  back  on  Prilep 
and  the  Babuna  Pass  fell  into  the  hands  of  the  enemy. 

Encouraged  by  this  success  the  Bulgarians  renewed 
their  attacks  on  the  French  troops  holding  the 
Tcherna  and  Rajec  rivers.  The  French  resisted 
valiantly  for  over  a  fortnight,  but  when  on  November 
25th  the  Serbian  armies  were  forced  to  again  retreat 
further  operations  ceased  to  have  any  object  or  value. 
The  troops  were  withdrawn  to  the  right  bank  of  the 


232       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

Tcherna  and  were  massed  around  Kavadar.  Thence, 
always  keeping  the  liaison  with  the  detachment  falHng 
back  from  Krivolac,  they  fell  back  through  the  Demir 
Kapu.  This  was  a  delicate  and  dangerous  operation, 
for  though  the  defile  of  the  Demir  Kapu  is  fairly 
broad  at  its  entrance,  its  exit,  twelve  miles  distant,  is 
a  narrow,  rocky  gorge,  500  yards  long,  from  which 
the  defile  takes  its  name,  Demir  Kapu  being  Turkish 
for  "Iron  Gate." 

After  some  days  severe  fighting  the  French  troops 
on  December  9th  succeeded  in  traversing  this  gorge 
in  safety  and  took  up  fresh  positions  on  the  Boyemia 
River,  with  the  Tenth  British  Division  on  their  right. 

By  this  time  considerable  reinforcements  both 
French  and  British  had  disembarked  at  Salonica  but 
the  greatest  difficulty  was  experienced  in  making  use 
of  them  owing  to  the  state  of  communications.  The 
roads  to  Doiran  were  mere  cattle  tracks  which  were 
soon  churned  into  a  quagmire  in  which  it  was  im- 
possible to  move  transport  and  guns.  The  position  of 
the  British  force  round  the  lake  became  so  critical 
that  General  Sir  Charles  Monro,  who  had  l>een  in 
command  of  the  whole  British  Mediterranean  Expedi- 
tionary Forces  with  headquarters  at  Malto  since 
October  28th,  urged  on  General  Sarrail  the  necessity 
of  the  immediate  withdrawal  of  the  French  Divisions 
from  Serbia.  If  this  was  not  done  there  was  danger 
that  the  German  and  Bulgarian  forces  would  drive 
back  the  small  British  force  holding  the  Strumitza 
Valley  and  would  cut  ofT  the  retreat  of  General  Sar- 
rail's   army.     On   December   5th   the   Bulgarians   at- 


Operations  on  the  Salonica  Front   233 

tacked  the  British  fiercely  in  overwhelming  numbers 
and  nothing  but  the  tenacity  of  the  Tenth  Division, — 
composed  of  four  crack  Irish  regiments,  the  Munster, 
Dublin  and  Inniskilling  Fusiliers  and  the  Connaught 
Rangers — saved  the  day.  In  falling  back  on  positions 
to  the  right  of  the  Boyemia  line  this  Division  lost 
1500  men  and  8  guns. 

But  even  the  Boyemia  line  proved  untenable.  The 
small  Franco-British  force  was  too  much  en  I'air,  too 
far  removed  from  the  Salonica  base.  In  addition  the 
Bulgarians,  who  on  December  2d  had  occupied 
Monastir,  threatened  their  flank  and  rear. 

It  therefore  became  questions  of  retiring  on  to 
Greek  territory.  This  at  once  raised  political  difficul- 
ties. The  Greeks  were  alarmed  at  the  prospect  of  an 
invasion  of  Germano-Bulgarian  troops  in  pursuit  of 
the  retreating  allied  army.  A  large  number  of  Greek 
troops  were  concentrated  around  Salonica  and  it  was 
known  that  at  Athens  in  certain  circles  the  idea  of 
disarming  and  interning  the  retreating  French,  British 
and  Serbian  armies  was  gaining  ground. 

This  caused  the  Allies  to  take  drastic  measures 
and  on  November  23d  they  presented  the  Skouloudis 
Government  (which  on  November  7th  had  replaced 
the  Saimis  Cabinet)  with  a  note  stating  that  "In  view 
of  the  attitude  adopted  by  the  Hellenic  Government 
toward  certain  questions  affecting  the  security  of  the 
Allied  troops  and  their  freedom  of  action  (two 
privileges  to  which  they  are  entitled  in  the  circum- 
stances in  which  they  landed  in  Greek  territory)  the 
Allied  Powers  have  deemed  it  necessary  to  take  cer- 


234       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

tain  measures,  the  effect  of  which  is  to  suspend  the 
economic  and  commercial  facihties  which  Greece  has 
hitherto  enjoyed  at  their  hands." 

King  Constantine  and  his  Government  disavowed 
any  intention  of  attacking  or  interning  the  Anglo- 
French  troops.  Their  attitude  was  less  clear  as 
regards  the  Serbian  troops  and  they  were  much  op- 
posed to  the  idea  of  withdrawing  Greek  troops  from 
the  zone  of  the  Allied  Armies  or  conceding  to  the 
latter  the  full  use  of  railway  and  harbours. 

The  Greek  Government  offered  to  establish  a  "cor- 
ridor" by  which  the  Allied  troops  could  retire  on 
Salonica  and  embark  there.  Missions  sent  from 
France  and  England,  headed  by  M.  Denys  Cochin  and 
Lord  Kitchener,  failed  to  get  anything  but  vague 
assurances  from  King  Constantine.  The  blockade 
was  accordingly  maintained  until  December  12th, 
when  the  Athens  Government  gave  way  and  consented 
to  withdraw  all  the  Greek  troops  except  one  division 
from   Salonica. 

On  that  date  the  entire  Franco-British  forces  were 
on  Greek  territory  holding  a  front  running  from 
Karasuli  on  the  Vardar  railway  to  Kilindir  on  the 
Salonica-Dedeagatch  line.  These  two  points  are  con- 
nected by  a  branch  line  of  railway.  It  was  on  this 
line  that  the  Allies  prepared  for  the  supreme  attack 
by  the  enemy.  But  this  attack  never  came.  Why  the 
Central  Powers  failed  to  take  advantage  of  their 
opportunity  to  finally  crush  the  Allied  resistance  and 
capture  Salonica  has  never  been  explained.  The 
Athens  Government  pretended  that  they  deserved  the 


Operations  on  the  Salonica  Front    235 

credit  for  this  as  the  Bulgarians  feared  the  inter- 
vention of  Greece  if  they  invaded  Greek  territory;  but 
in  view  of  the  subsequent  treason  of  the  Greek  King 
and  Government  in  surrendering  Fort  Rupel  this 
seems  Httle  probable. 

It  is  more  likely  that  the  Germans  counted  on  King 
Constantine's  "neutrality"  to  render  the  positions  of 
the  Allied  forces  untenable  and  lead  them  to  abandon 
the  whole  Salonica  front,  the  more  so  as  the  Ger- 
mans were  openly  boasting  of  a  coming  invasion  of 
Egypt  and  announcing  their  offensive  on  the  Verdun 
front.  In  addition  there  was  wrangling  between 
Berlin  and  Sofia  as  to  whether  the  forces  in  the 
Balkans  should  be  under  the  supreme  command  of  a 
Bulgarian  or  a  German  General.  Vienna  and  Sofia 
were  further  in  hot  dispute  as  to  the  ultimate  fate  of 
Salonica,  both  Austria  and  Bulgaria  claiming  the  right 
to  annex  it  when  captured.  Whatever  may  have  been 
the  reasons  for  the  hesitation  of  the  Central  Powers 
the  fact  remains  that  the  Franco-British  armies  were 
able,  unmolested,  to  take  over  their  new  positions  on 
Greek  territory. 

When  this  was  accomplished  the  whole  mission  and 
scope  of  the  Army  of  the  Orient  had  changed.  Its 
original  objective  was  an  energetic  offensive  to  save 
the  Serbian  army  and  prevent  the  Austro-German 
forces  under  General  von  Mackensen  joining  hands 
with  the  Bulgarians.  In  this  it  had  failed.  The 
Serbian  Army,  as  I  have  described  in  the  first  part 
of  this  book,  had  been  driven  back  to  the  confines  of 
Serbia  and  forced  to  retreat  into  Albania.    Salonica, 


236       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

instead  of  being  a  mere  port  of  disembarkation,  had 
changed  to  the  base  of  a  new  defensive  front,  that 
of  Macedonia.  The  task  of  General  Sarrail's  army 
was  no  longer  that  of  driving  out  the  Germano-Bul- 
garian  army  but  was  to  prevent  the  port  of  Salonica 
falling  into  the  hands  of  the  enemy. 

The  first  care  of  the  Allied  Commander-in-chief 
was  to  prepare  the  defence  of  the  entrenched  camps 
of  Salonica,  This  was  no  easy  task  as  the  total  num- 
ber of  soldiers  at  his  disposal  at  this  date  did  not 
exceed  200,000  men.  On  account  of  the  smallness  of 
his  army  General  Sarrail  could  not  dream  of  holding 
either  the  outer  or  the  inner  ring  of  mountains  which 
surround  the  city  and  plain  of  Salonica. 

As  a  consequence  the  western  line  of  defence  was 
established  on  the  Vardar.  Towards  its  mouth  this 
river  is  marshy,  forming  a  natural  obstacle  to  enemy 
attack,  and  this  made  it  possible  for  the  line  to  be  held 
with  the  minimum  number  of  men.  But  the  sector  had 
one  serious  drawback,  the  fact  that  malaria  raged  here 
six  months  in  the  year.  From  the  village  of  Topshin 
on  the  Vardar  the  line  ran  east  to  Langhaza  and 
Beshik  Lakes,  reaching  the  Gulf  of  Orfano  at  Stavros. 
The  total  length  of  the  line  was  fifty  miles. 

Behind  this  line  lay  the  Chalcidice  Peninsula  into 
which,  if  hard  pressed,  the  Army  of  the  Orient  could 
have  retired.  As  this  is  bounded  on  the  western  side 
by  the  Gulf  of  Salonica  and  on  the  eastern  side  by  the 
Gulf  of  Orfano  the  guns  of  the  fleet  could  have 
powerfully  aided  the  land  forces  and  rendered  the 
peninsula  practically  untenable   for  the  enemy.    Gen- 


Operations  on  the  Salonica  Front   237 

eral  Castelnau,  Field  Marshal  Joffre's  chief  of  staff, 
who  made  a  tour  of  inspection  on  December  20th, 
declared  his  opinion  that  the  entrenched  camp  of 
Salonica  was  practically  impregnable. 

Nothing  was  neglected  to  still  further  strengthen 
the  natural  advantages  of  the  position.  A  deep  and 
elaborate  system  of  trenches  with  formidable  barbed 
wire  entanglements  was  constructed  from  which 
numerous  machine  gun  batteries  commanded  all  the 
points  from  which  the  enemy  could  attack. 

But  if  the  military  situation  was  fairly  satisfactory 
it  is  more  than  could  be  said  of  the  political  one.  As 
the  Army  of  the  Orient  was  on  what  was  technically 
neutral  territory,  French  and  British  politically  en- 
joyed no  more  rights  than  the  enemy.  The  presence 
in  Salonica  of  Austrian,  German,  Bulgarian  and 
Turkish  consulates,  together  with  hundreds  of  Ger- 
man and  Austrian  civilians  and  thousands  of  Turks 
and  Bulgarians,  was  a  constant  menace  against  which 
a  large  force  of  military  police  had  to  be  employed. 

This  soon  found  evidence  that  the  various  con- 
sulates, as  was  to  be  expected,  were  centres  of  enemy 
espionage.  Their  activities  were  undoubtedly  at  the 
bottom  of  the  enemy  air  raids  and  after  one  of  these 
General  Sarrail  ordered  the  consuls  to  be  arrested. 
This  action  on  the  part  of  the  French  commander-in- 
chief  caused  loud  protest  from  the  Greek  Government. 
This,  however,  died  away  when  the  French  were  able 
to  bring  proof  that  the  consulates  were  not  only  the 
headquarters  of  enemy  propaganda  and  espionage  but 
were  actuallv  used  as  storehouses  for  arms  and  muni- 


238       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

tions  with  which  it  was  evidently  the  intention  of  the 
enemy  to  arm  the  enemy  section  of  the  population  in 
case  of  a  serious  reverse  to  the  Allies. 

In  spite  of  the  loud  assurance  by  the  Greeks  of 
their  "benevolent"  neutrality  the  policy  of  the  Athens 
Government  was  viewed  with  profound  (and  as  it 
afterwards  turned  out  well  merited)  suspicion.  The 
defence  of  Eastern  Macedonia,  of  which  the  vital 
point  was  the  great  iron  girder  bridge  of  Demirhissar, 
on  which  the  railway  line  from  Doiran  to  Seres 
crosses  the  Struma,  was  in  Greek  hands.  The 
northern  extremity  of  the  bridge  was  guarded  by 
Fort  Rupel,  the  key  position  of  the  Stnuna  entrance 
into  Greece.  Fort  Rupel  was  the  most  powerful 
fortress  on  Greek  soil.  But  as  General  Sarrail  had  no 
confidence  that  the  Greek  garrison  would  put  up  an 
energetic  defence  against  the  Bulgarians  he  gave 
orders  that  the  bridge  of  Demirhissar  and  a  smaller 
one  at  Kilindir,  near  Doiran,  should  be  blown  up. 
This  was  done  on  January   12th. 

A  week  later  General  Sarrail  was  officially  en- 
trusted with  the  supreme  command  of  the  Army  of 
the  Orient.  Up  to  that  time,  General  Sir  Byran 
Mohon,  the  commander  of  the  British  contingent,  had 
been  independent  of  General  Sarrail  and  subject  only 
to  the  orders  of  General  Sir  C.  C.  Monro,  the  Com- 
mander-in-Chief of  the  British  Mediterranean  Expe- 
ditionary Force. 

General  Sarrail's  first  act  on  assuming  supreme 
command  was  to  seize  the  fortress  of  Kara  Burun,  the 
"Black  Headland,"  which  commands  the  entrance  to 


Operations  on  the  Salonica  Front  239 

the  inner  Gulf  of  Salonica.  This  action  caused  some 
sensation  at  Athens  and  led  to  loud  protest  from  the 
governmental  press. 

During  the  winter  months  operations  were  chiefly 
confined  to  skirmishes  between  the  cavalry  of  both 
si^es  occasionally  reinforced  by  light  artillery.  Mean- 
while reinforcements,  British  and  French,  were  arriv- 
ing steadily  so  that  by  the  end  of  the  winter  the  Army 
of  the  Orient  had  increased  to  300,000  men.  Enemy 
air  raids  both  by  aeroplanes  and  Zeppelins  were  fre- 
quent, but  after  one  of  the  latter  was  brought  down  in 
the  Vardar  marshes  and  its  crew  captured  no  further 
attacks  by  dirigibles  were  attempted.  Such  was  the 
position  of  the  Army  of  the  Orient  when  in  the  spring 
of  1916  the  transportation  of  the  reorganized  Serbian 
army  from  the  Island  of  Corfu  to  Salonica  was  begun. 


CHAPTER  II 

REORGANIZATION    AND   DISEMBARKMENT    OF   THE 
SERBIAN    ARMY 

WHILE  the  French  and  British  contingents  were 
opposing  the  advance  toward  Salonica  of  the 
Germano-Austro-Bulgarian  armies  the  Serbian  army 
was  carrying  out  its  now  legendary  retreat  through 
the  desolation  of  Albania  and  its  transport  to  the 
Island  of  Corfu. 

This  retreat  and  transport  I  have  described  in  the 
first  part  of  this  work.  The  total  number  of  Serbian 
soldiers  who  were  able  to  effect  this  retreat  was  about 
150,000.  Of  these  about  5000  succeeded  in  reaching 
the  Salonica  front,  10,000,  mostly  sick  and  wounded, 
were  transported  to  the  French  military  centre  at 
Bizerta  in  Tunis  and  the  remainder  found  refuge  in 
Corfu.  Of  these  large  numbers  were  sick  and  all  were 
in  a  state  of  extreme  exhaustion.  As  the  decision  to 
convey  King  Peter's  army  to  Corfu  was  only  taken 
at  the  last  moment  no  preparations  had  been  made  to 
receive  them  on  that  island.  The  result  was  that  the 
era  of  hardship  and  suffering  was  not  closed  for  the 
Serbs.  As  a  consequence  hundreds  succumbed  to 
exhaustion  and  wounds  received  during  the  retreat. 

But  there  remained  about  100,000  men  who,  after 

240 


Reorganization  and  Disembarkxnent  241 

being  rested  and  reorganized,  would  still  be  good  for 
active  service.  With  that  incredible  devotion  to  duty 
which  characterizes  the  Serbian  army  it  at  once  pro- 
ceeded, with  admirable  energy,  to  reorganize  a  new 
fighting  force  and  equip  it  for  the  field. 

It  was  decided  to  form  three  Armies  (each  of  two 
divisions  of  infantry)  with  the  necessary  technical 
and  special  arms;  a  division  of  cavalry  of  four  regi- 
ments; the  units  necessary  for  the  General  Head- 
quarters and,  in  addition,  the  Commander  and  Staff 
for  the  reserve  troops  to  be  drawn  from  the  10,000 
men  at  Bizerta  as  soon  as  these  should  have  recovered 
from  their  wounds  and  sickness  and  be  able  to  return 
to  active  service. 

The  Divisions  of  Infantry  consisted  of  four  regi- 
ments, each  of  three  battalions,  one  regiment  of  the 
first  "Ban,"  the  divisional  Cavalry,  the  divisional 
Artillery  (field,  mountain  and  howitzer  batteries),  di- 
visional engineer  troops  and  the  necessary  sanitary 
and  commissariat  sections  and  the  army  transport 
service. 

It  was  further  decided  to  form  first  a  division  and 
later,  if  possible,  an  army  corps,  of  the  Jugo-Slav 
volunteers  from  the  Russian  front  and  elsewhere. 
The  fundamental  basis  of  the  new  organization  was 
definitely  laid  down  at  a  conference  held  at  Paris  in 
the  month  of  March  at  which  were  present  officers 
delegated  from  the  Serbian  Army  and  officers  rep- 
resenting the  French  Ministry  of  war.  All  questions 
regarding  equipment,  field  transport  and  provisioning 


242       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

of  the  new  Serbian  Army  were  taken  over  by  France 
and  Great  Britain. 

At  this  conference  it  was  decided  that  in  view  of 
the  political  and  military  situation  the  Serbian 
Army,  after  its  reorganization,  should  be  transported 
to  the  Salonica  front,  with  a  view  to  undertaking  as 
an  autonomous  army,  military  action  in  co-operation 
with  the  Allies  to  drive  the  enemy  from  the  territory 
occupied  by  him  and  force  him  to  capitulation.  It 
was  further  decided  that  the  Division  of  Serbian  Vol- 
unteers operating  in  Russia  should,  for  the  time  being, 
be  left  in  that  country  to  co-operate  with  the  Russian 
armies  and  the  army  of  Roumania,  whose  entry  into 
the  war  on  the  side  of  the  Entente  was  momentarily 
expected. 

Thanks  to  the  patriotism  and  admirable  military 
qualities  of  the  Serbian  soldier,  his  high  conception 
of  duty  and  his  marvellous  spirit  of  self-sacrifice  and 
thanks  also  to  the  systematic  and  energetic  efforts  of 
the  Serbian  high  command,  the  work  of  the  reorgani- 
zation of  the  Serbian  army  was  accomplished  with  a 
speed  and  thoroughness  worthy  of  all  praise. 

When  the  army  arrived  in  Corfu  in  the  early  winter 
of  19 1 6  it  was  in  the  last  stages  of  destitution.  All 
that  the  men  possessed  were  their  broken  footwear 
and  their  ragged  uniforms.  Of  arms  nothing  was 
left  but  the  rifle  and  bayonet  each  man  carried  and 
the  few  machine  guns  they  had  been  able  to  transport 
on  muleback  through  Albania.  By  the  month  of  May 
reuniformed,  re-equipped,  formed  into  companies, 
battalions,  regiments,  brigades  and  divisions,  with  its 


Reorganization  and  Disembarkment  243 

staff  completely  reformed,  it  was  again  ready  for  the 
field.  And  this  effort  had  been  demanded  from  men 
who  had  been  constantly  at  war  since  19 12,  who 
had  fought  the  Turks,  the  Bulgarians,  the  Albanians, 
the  Austrians  and  finally  the  combined  German,  Aus- 
trian and  Bulgarian  annies.  This  resurrection  of 
King  Peter's  army  as  a  fighting  force  was  one  more 
proof  of  the  wonderful  virility  of  "The  nation  that 
can  never  die." 

While  the  Serbian  army  was  preparing  at  Corfu  for 
the  new  campaign  the  war  material  for  the  army  was 
being  assembled  in  France.  This  was  concentrated  at 
the  towns  of  Orange,  Lunel  and  Mantauban  in  the 
South  of  France.  As  the  entire  artillery,  pontoon 
train,  field  telegraphy,  ambulance,  transport  wagons, 
motors,  horses  and  all  the  thousand  and  one  things 
that  go  to  make  up  the  impedimenta  of  a  modern  army 
in  the  field  had  to  be  transported  to  Salonica  the 
task  was  a  formidable  one.  At  Salonica  camps  and 
magazines  had  to  be  established  where  this  material 
could  be  stored  till  it  was  distributed  to  the  troops. 

But  if  the  military  part  of  the  transportation  of 
the  Serbian  army  to  the  Salonica  front  ran  smoothly 
enough  it  is  more  than  could  be  said  of  the  political 
part.  The  Entente  Powers  knew  that  the  Mediter- 
ranean and  the  TEgean  were  swarming  with  enemy 
submarines.  They  also  knew  that  the  Central  Powers 
would  leave  nothing  undone  to  interfere  with  and  if 
possible  prevent  the  safe  transport  of  King  Peter's 
army.  They,  therefore,  proposed  that  instead  of 
making  the  long  voyage  round  cape  Matapan,  where 


244       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

it  was  notorious  the  submarines  lay  in  wait  for  ships 
bound  for  Salonica,  the  transports  should  land  at  Itea 
or  some  other  port  in  the  Gulf  of  Corinth  and  be 
forwarded  by  the  Larissa  railway  to  Salonica. 

But  to  this  the  Skouloudis  Government  raised  end- 
less objections.  They  claimed  that  the  passage  of  the 
army  would  disorganize  the  ordinary  traffic.  Then 
the  Serbs  might  bring  infectious  diseases  intO'  the 
country  and,  last  but  not  least,  the  permission  to  cross 
Greek  territory  accorded  to  the  Serbian  army  might, 
be  regarded  as  a  breach  of  Greek  neutrality  and  em- 
broil them  with  the  Central  Powers.  The  real  reason 
was  of  course,  that  the  pro-German  King  Constantine 
desired  to  put  every  obstacle  in  the  way  of  the  Allies 
and  delay  as  long  as  possible  the  arrival  of  the  Serbian 
reinforcements  on  the  Macedonian  front,  in  the 
interest  of  his  imperial  brother-in-law,  the  Kaiser. 

But  while  these  long-drawn-out  negotiations  were 
going  on  at  Athens  the  Serbian  Headquarters  began 
the  transport  of  the  troops  by  the  sea  route,  pre- 
ferring to  take  the  risk  of  submarine  attacks  rather 
than  lose  any  more  time.  For  the  transport  France 
provided  21  vessels,  Italy  5  and  Great  Britain  3.  The 
army  showed  the  greatest  enthusiasm,  the  men  being 
impatient  to  reach  the  new  front  where  they  could 
strike  another  blow  for  the  liberation  of  their  be- 
loved Serbia. 

The  first  transport  left  the  island  on  April  8th. 
The  embarkation  of  the  First  Army  and  the  division 
of  cavalry  took  place  at  the  port  of  Govino.  That 
of    the    Second    and    Third    Armies   at    the    port    of 


Reorganization  and  Disembarkment  245 

Moraitika.  The  horses  were  embarked  at  the  port  of 
Corfu.  The  first  troops  to  leave  were  the  divisions  of 
the  Drina  and  the  Danube,  composing  the  Third 
Army,  and  the  division  of  cavalry.  Then  followed  the 
divisions  of  the  Shumadia  and  Timok,  composing  the 
Second  Army,  and  finally  the  divisions  of  the  Morava 
and  the  Vardar,  composing  the  First  Army.  The 
total  number  of  voyages  required  was  seventy-five. 
The  transportation  lasted  two  months,  the  first  vessel 
sailing  on  April  8th  and  the  last  on  June  5th.  This 
latter  carried  the  Headquarters  Staff  which  was  the 
last  unit  to  leave  Corfu. 

Thanks  to  the  tireless  vigilance  of  the  convoying 
fleets  the  Serbian  army  was  transferred  from  Corfu 
to  the  Macedonian  front  without  the  loss  of  a  single 
man.  In  order  to  reduce  the  danger  of  attack  by 
enemy  submarines  the  transports  passed  through  the 
Corinth  canal,  thus  avoiding  the  dangerous  route  by 
Cape  Matapan.  All  that  was  left  at  Corfu  was  the 
Ministry  of  War,  a  battalion  of  old  men  of  the  Last 
Defence,  a  few  gendarmes,  some  hospital  units,  a  num- 
ber of  sick  in  convalescence  and  some  labour  com- 
panies, a  total  of  about  10,000  men.  When  the  troops 
left  the  island  the  Mayor  of  Corfu  issued  a  procla- 
mation in  which  he  paid  high  tribute  to  the  excellent 
conduct  and  admirable  discipline  of  the  Serbian  army. 
Not  one  single  crime,  not  one  theft  had  been  com- 
mitted by  this  army  of  150,000  men  during  the  four 
months  it  spent  on  the  island.  In  spite  of  the  fact 
that  when  the  Serbian  army  arrived  it  suffered  in- 
tensely from  cold,  being  without  tents  or  other  shelter. 


246       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

the  troops  had  not  cut  down  a  single  one  of  the  thou- 
sands of  olive  trees  which  are  one  of  the  principal 
sources  of  the  prosperity  of  the  island. 

The  military  authorities  at  Salonica  decided  that 
the  Serbian  army  should  disembark  on  the  Chalcidice 
Peninsula,  at  the  little  port  of  Mikra.  Here  floating 
pontoons  were  established  alongside  of  which  the 
transports  were  moored  and  disembarked  troops  and 
material.  The  necessar}^  magazines,  field  bakeries, 
etc.,  had  been  established  in  advance  so  that  the  feed- 
ing and  provisioning  of  the  troops  proceeded  smoothly 
from  the  first  day  of  their  landing. 

A  large  number  of  bathing-houses  had  been  erected 
where  the  troops  were  bathed  and  their  effects  dis- 
infected. When  this  was  accomplished  each  unit  was 
sent  to  the  camp  at  Sedes,  where  it  remained  five  days 
in  quarantine  before  being  sent  to  the  permanent 
camps.  These  camps  had  all  been  prepared  in  advance 
with  food  magazines,  field  bakeries,  pure  water  supply, 
etc.  They  had  been  laid  out  by  advance  parties  of 
Serbian  troops,  assisted  by  the  17th  French  Colonial 
Division  which  was  encamped  at  Mikra  Bay.  The 
camps  were  very  spacious,  the  troops  having  large 
quantities  of  ground  for  drill  and  manoeuvres.  The 
only  drawback  was  the  complete  absence  of  trees.  As 
a  result  of  this  the  army  suffered  very  much  from  the 
torrid  heat  of  June  and  July. 

Simultaneously  with  the  landing  of  the  army  began 
the  disembarkment  of  its  war  material  which,  as  I 
have  said,  was  assembled  in  the  South  of  France.  As 
fast  as  it  arrived  it  was  distributed  to  the  troops  who 


Reorganization  and  Disembarkment  247 

began  at  once,  tinder  the  direction  of  a  mission  of 
French  officers,  to  familiarize  themselves  with  the  new 
material.  In  spite  of  the  tropical  heat  the  training  of 
the  troops  in  the  handling  of  their  new  war  material 
was  carried  on  in  such  an  intense  and  energetic 
fashion  that  by  the  second  half  of  June  the  army, 
completely  equipped  (with  the  exception  of  a  small 
amount  of  artillery  and  transport)  and  trained,  was 
ready  to  take  the  field  once  more. 

The  Prince  Regent  Alexander,  Commander-in- 
Chief  of  the  army  and  the  General  Headquarters  were 
installed  in  Salonica.  The  Headquarters  occupied  a 
handsome  and  spacious  house  in  the  Ouartier  des 
Compagnes  which  had  formerly  been  the  Austro-Hun- 
garian  Consulate,  while  Prince  Alexander  established 
the  royal  Konak  in  a  villa  on  one  of  the  side  streets 
at  right  angles,  the  main  highway  running  along  the 
bay. 


CHAPTER  III 

FINAL  CONSTITUTION  OF  THE  ARMY  OF  THE  ORIENT 

THE  last  Serbian  transport  landed  its  quota  of 
troops  at  Mikra  on  the  6th  of  June,  19 16.  A 
few  days  later  the  Headquarters  Staff  arrived.  The 
entire  Serbian  army  was  then  on  the  Macedonian 
front. 

But  if  there  was  a  momentary  lull  in  military 
operations  on  a  grand  scale,  events  of  great  political 
import  were  taking  place.  The  complete  abandonment 
of  the  offensive  by  the  Allies  and  their  retirement 
within  the  entrenched  camp  of  Salonica  had  greatly 
encouraged  the  enemy  and  caused  him  to  decide  on  an 
attack.  The  weak  point  of  the  Allied  line  was  the 
position  to  the  East  of  the  Struma.  The  right  bank 
of  that  river  and  the  Greek  frontier  were  guarded  by 
French  troops,  but,  except  for  the  destruction  of  the 
Demirhissar  bridge,  nothing  had  been  done  to  cover 
the  eastern  flank.  It  is  true  that  this  was  occupied  by 
Greek  troops,  but  General  Sarrail  was  filled  with  deep 
distrust  of  the  soldiers  of  King  Constantine.  The 
positions  they  held  should  have  guarded  the  .\llies 
from  enemy  attack  through  the  Struma  valley.  The 
entrance  to  this  was  commanded  by  Fort  Rupel,  the 
most    formidable    fortress   in    Greece.     This    fortress 

248 


Final  Constitution  of  the  Army  249 

was  strongly  garrisoned  by  Greek  troops  and  behind 
it  lay  two  Greek  army  corps,  one  having  its  head- 
quarters at  Seres  and  the  other  at  Kavala. 

A  few  days  later  the  French  Commander-in-Chief 
received  proof  of  how  little  confidence  could  be  placed 
in  the  loyalty  of  the  Greeks.  On  May  26th  the  Bul- 
garian army  suddenly  advanced  on  Rupel.  The  Com- 
mandant of  the  fort,  after  the  merest  pretence  at 
resistance,  surrendered  it  to  the  enemy.  The  key  of 
the  Struma  valley  was  therefore  now  in  the  hands  of 
the  Bulgarians.  It  was  subsequently  discovered  that 
this  act  of  betrayal  by  the  Greeks  had  been  plotted 
months  before.  As  far  back  as  March  General  Yan- 
nakitsas,  the  Greek  Minister  of  War,  had  sent  instruc- 
tions to  all  the  Commandants  of  fortresses  in  Greece 
ordering  them  not  to  offer  any  resistance  to  the  Bul- 
garian or  German  armies. 

The  surrender  of  Fort  Rupel  was  a  source  of  grave 
embarrassment  to  General  Sarrail.  It  meant  that  he 
would  have  to  immobilize  a  large  number  of  troops  to 
guarantee  the  holding  of  the  Struma  Valley  as  there 
was,  of  course,  no  dependence  to  be  placed  in  the 
Greek  forces  making  any  serious  effort  to  defend  it. 
On  the  contrary  the  Greek  troops  became  a  direct 
menace  to  the  Allies. 

It  is  needless  to  say  that  this  act  of  treachery  led 
to  an  instant  irremediable  breach  l>etween  the  Allies 
and  the  Skouloudis  Government.  A  blockade  of  the 
Greek  ports  was  at  once  established.  This,  on  June 
2 1st,  was  followed  by  a  peremptory  demand  for  the 
immediate   dismissal   of   the   Skouloudis   Government 


250       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

and  its  replacement  by  a  cabinet  d'affaires  which 
should  be  entirely  without  political  color  and  which 
should  guarantee  the  continuance  of  "benevolent 
neutrality"  vis-a-vis  the  Entente  Powers. 

The  Powers  further  demanded  the  complete  demob- 
ilization of  the  Greek  army,  the  dissolution  of  the 
Chamber  of  Deputies,  the  dismissal  of  certain  objec- 
tionable police  officials  and  the  holding  of  fresh  elec- 
tions. It  was  stated  that  this  note  would  be  supported 
by  a  naval  demonstration.  This,  however,  proved 
unnecessary  as  M.  Skouloudis  resigned  in  all  haste 
and  was  succeeded  by  a  cabinet  under  M.  Zaimis. 

On  June  3d  General  Sarrail  proclaimed  the  city  of 
Salonica  and  the  territory  occupied  by  the  Allies  under 
martial  law.  Thanks  to  the  arrival  of  the  hundred 
thousand  Serbs  and  other  French  and  British  rein- 
forcements, the  total  number  of  troops  under  the 
supreme  command  of  General  Sarrail  now  amounted 
to  about  400,000  men. 

On  July  30th  a  considerable  force  of  Russian 
troops  disembarked  at  Salonica  and  were,  a  fortnight 
later,  followed  by  30,000  Italians  under  General 
Count  Alfonso  Petitti  de  Roreto.  The  arrival  of  the 
Russians,  who  had  made  half  the  circuit  of  the  globe 
to  reach  the  Macedonian  front,  created  a  great  sensa- 
tion. All  Salonica  turned  out  to  welcome  them.  It 
would  be  difficult  to  imagine  a  finer  body  of  men  and 
as  they  swung  along  the  quays  and  past  the  Square 
of  Liberty,  where  Flocas  and  half  a  score  of  other 
large  cafes  are  situated,  the  thousands  lining  the 
streets  cheered  them  to  the  echo.     Much  speculation 


Final  Constitution  of  the  Army  251 

was  indulged  in  as  to  the  effect  upon  the  Bulgarians 
of  the  presence  of  Russian  troops.  When  it  was  re- 
membered that  it  was  to  Russia  that  Bulgaria  owed 
her  very  existence  and  that  400,000  soldiers  of  the 
Tzar,  who  died  to  free  Bulgaria  from  the  yoke  of  the 
Turk,  lie  buried  on  the  plains  around  Plevna  it  was 
thought  that  in  very  shame  the  soldiers  of  King  Ferdi- 
nand would  not  fire  on  their  former  liberators. 

Such  at  least  was  the  feeling  of  the  loyal  Serbians. 
When  the  arrival  of  the  Russians  was  announced  in 
their  naivete  they  believed  that  their  presence  would 
be  a  source  of  embarrassment  to  the  Bulgarians.  They 
did  not  see  how,  in  alliance  with  the  Turks,  from 
whose  yoke  Russia  had  set  them  free,  the  soldiers  of 
King  Ferdinand  could  open  fire  on  the  troops  of  the 
country  which  had  liberated  them.  Up  in  the  front 
line  trenches  the  Serbian  soldiers  wrote  on  a  piece  of 
paper  word  of  the  arrival  of  the  Russian  contingent, 
wrapped  it  round  a  stone  and  threw  it  into  the  Bul- 
garian trenches.  But  they  did  not  know  their  Bul- 
garians. The  reply,  which  was  shown  me  by  Colonel 
Pavlovitch,  the  Commander  of  the  Divisions  of  the 
Shumadia,  contained  the  words :  "Our  bayonets  are 
just  as  sharp  for  the  Russians  as  for  you." 

The  Italian  division  also  was  composed  of  picked 
troops,  men  who  had  seen  active  service  on  the  Izonzo 
front.  As  they  tramped  up  Venizelos  Street,  swinging 
along  with  light,  elastic  tread  in  spite  of  their  heavy 
packs,  they  were  a  body  of  troops  of  which  any  com- 
mander might  be  proud.  The  dark  faces  of  the  men, 
bronzed  by  the  sun  of  the  Izonzo  and  the  snow-chilled 


252       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

winds  of  the  mountains,  showed  them  to  be  veterans. 
As  is  always  the  case  in  the  ItaHan  army,  their  engi- 
neer contingent  was  a  corps  d'  elite.  The  regiment  of 
"Pontonieri"  had  one  of  the  most  admirable  bridging 
outfits  I  have  ever  seen,  strong,  light  and  compact. 
The  men  were  for  the  most  part  natives  of  Venice, 
accustomed  to  working  in  the  lagoons  of  that  city.  I 
saw  the  pontoon  section  at  work  later  at  the  front  and 
can  testify  that  they  were  smart  and  efficient  soldiers, 
who  knew  their  business  thoroughly. 

With  the  arrival  of  the  Russian  and  Italian  contin- 
gents the  Army  of  the  Orient  was  definitely  consti- 
tuted. It  was,  in  many  respects,  the  most  remarkable 
force  in  military  annals,  consisting  as  it  did  of  French, 
British,  Serbian,  Russian  and  Italian  troops.  But 
though  this  certainly  made  for  picturesqueness  it  did 
not  make  it  as  efficient  a  fighting  machine  as  it  would 
have  been  had  it  consisted  of  troops  of  a  single  na- 
tionality. 

Each  army  enjoyed  military  and  administrative 
autonomy.  Each  army  had  its  own  commander  and 
its  own  headquarters  staff.  The  French  contingent 
was  commanded  by  General  Cordonnier,  the  British 
contingent  by  Lieuteuant-General  G.  F.  Milne,  the 
Serbian  army  by  the  Prince-Regent  Alexander,  the 
Italian  division  by  General  Count  Alfonso  Petitti  de 
Roreto  and  the  Russian  division  by  General  Leontieff. 
The  supreme  command  of  the  entire  Army  of  the 
Orient  was  in  the  hands  of  General  Sarrail  and  the 
General  Headquarters  Staff  working  under  his  orders. 

At  first  there  had  not  even  been  unitv  of  command. 


Final  Constitution  of  the  Army  253 

During  the  operations  on  Serbian  soil  the  movements 
of  the  British  contingent  were  directed  from  Malta 
by  General  Sir  C.  C.  Monro,  commanding  the  British 
Mediterranean  Expeditionary  force.  Of  course,  Gen- 
eral Monro  made  every  effort  to  maintain  close  liaison 
with  General  Sarrail,  but  it  need  not  be  pointed  out 
what  a  handicap  this  dual  command  was  in  moments 
when  it  was  necessary  to  take  prompt  decisions. 

General  Sarrail  was  a  soldier  of  eminence  who  had 
played  an  active  and  a  brilliant  part  on  the  Western 
front  in  France.  He  had  the  reputation  of  being  an 
energetic  and  resourceful  leader.  During  the  retreat 
to  the  Marne  he  commanded  the  Third  French  Army, 
which  held  the  sector  round  Verdun.  He  was  chiefly 
responsible  for  the  field  entrenchments  round  that  city 
(he  belonged  to  the  engineering  arm  of  the  French 
army)  which  afterwards  allowed  the  French  to  suc- 
cessfully resist  the  attacks  of  the  German  Crown- 
Prince's  army. 

He  had,  however,  the  reputation  of  taking  a  more 
active  interest  in  French  party  politics  than  is  advis- 
able in  a  soldier.  By  many  his  rapid  advance  and  the 
confidence  he  enjoyed  was  ascribed  to  the  support  he 
received  from  the  Radical-socialist  party.  This  made 
him  many  enemies  among  military  men  and  caused 
much  division  of  opinion  as  to  his  real  merits  as  a 
soldier.  When  he  first  arrived  in  Salonica  he  organ- 
ized a  Political  Bureau  as  a  part  of  the  General  Head- 
quarters Staff  to  which  a  numl^er  of  militarized  depu- 
ties from  the  French  Chaml>er  belonged.  This  was 
later,  by  orders  from  Paris,  dissolved  and  the  soldier- 


254       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

deputies  recalled.  Many  people  believed  further  that 
he  occupied  himself  too  much  with  political  moves  in 
Athens  and  in  Greek  Macedonia  to  the  detriment  of 
his  military  eflfort. 

At  the  same  time  his  task  was  no  easy  one.  All  his 
plans  had  to  be  communicated  to  the  Headquarters 
Staff  of  the  various  contingents.  As  there  were  five 
of  those  there  was  an  increased  danger  of  leakage 
and  this  in  a  city  swarming  with  enemy  spies.  There 
was  no  means  of  preventing  the  enemy  learning  the 
numbers  and  constitution  of  the  Army  of  the  Orient, 
as  every  man  had  to  be  disembarked  from  shipboard. 
As  hundreds  of  Greek  harbor  workers  were  in  enemy 
pay  the  Germans  and  Bulgarians  knew,  to  a  company, 
the  composition  of  the  Army  of  the  Orient.  They 
were  able  to  obtain  easily  information  of  the  sanitary 
condition  of  the  army,  knew  the  number  of  sick  re- 
patriated and  the  number  in  hospital.  Every  regiment 
sent  up  to  the  front  was  noted  and  the  positions  and 
concentration  of  the  troops  were  known  to  the  Mace- 
donian population,  which  contained  thousands  of 
Greeks,  Turks  and  Bulgarians,  each  a  possible  spy. 
Athens  was  in  daily  wireless  and  aeroplane  commu- 
nication with  the  enemy  headquarters  so  that  King 
Constantine  was  able  to  keep  his  imperial  brother-in- 
law,  the  Kaiser,  informed  of  every  move  of  the  Allies. 
As  the  Greek  General  Staff  had  been  carefully  selected 
for  its  pro-German  sympathies  the  ministry  of  war 
at  Athens  was  nothing  more  nor  less  than  a  branch 
of  the  Grosse  General  Stab  in  Berlin. 

Another  problem  confronting  General  Sarrail  was 


Final  Constitution  of  the  Army  255 

the  question  of  communications.  In  the  whole  of 
Macedonia  there  were  only  three  railroads,  and  these 
single-track,  the  Salonica-Monastir  line,  the  Salonica- 
Uskub  line  and  the  line  to  Seres  and  Kavalla.  The 
means  of  communication  were  hopelessly  inadequate 
to  provide  for  a  field  army  of  half  a  million  men. 
Before,  therefore,  military  operations  could  be  under- 
taken on  a  large  scale  thousands  of  kilometres  of 
roads  and  hundreds  of  kilometres  of  light  Decauville 
railways  had  to  be  constructed.  The  three  hundred 
thousand  men  under  the  command  of  General  Sarrail 
and  tens  of  thousands  of  Macedonian  peasants  were 
put  to  this  heart-breaking  task  on  Salonica  territory. 

Once  the  roads  were  constructed  motor  trucks, 
horse  and  ox  draw^n  wagons  and  pack  animals  had  to 
be  provided  by  the  thousands.  Only  by  this  formid- 
able service  d'arriere,  a  service  which  absorbed  one 
full  half  of  the  total  force,  could  the  army  in  the  field 
be  kept  supplied  with  food  and  munitions.  Telegraph 
and  telephone  lines  had  to  be  laid  over  hundreds  of 
square  miles  of  territory  while  a  formidable  pontoon 
train  had  to  be  held  in  readiness  for  bridging  the  nu- 
merous streams  and  rivers. 

But  the  worst  enemy  of  the  Army  of  the  Orient  was 
the  malaria.  The  country  between  Salonica  and  the 
mountain  range  is  notoriously  ravaged  each  year  by 
malarial  fever  of  the  most  virulent  kind.  Whole  di- 
visions were  placed  hors  de  combat.  When  the  Shu- 
madia  division  was  holding  the  Topshin  sector  it  had 
over  2,000  men  down  with  malaria  out  of  a  total  of 
ten  thousand.     At  one  time  the  sick  rate  of  the  Army 


256       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

of  the  Orient  rose  to  10,000  a  week.  The  number  of 
fatal  cases  was  very  great  and  in  cases  where  the  men 
survived  the  period  of  convalescence  was  very  long 
and  the  number  of  relapses  very  high. 


CHAPTER  IV 


THE  SALONICA   BASE 


THE  failure  of  the  Army  of  the  Orient  to  save 
the  Serbian  army  and  its  retirement  on  the  en- 
trenched camp  of  Salonica  caused,  as  I  have  stated, 
a  complete  change  in  the  situation  in  the  Near  East. 
Salonica  from  being  a  mere  port  of  disembarkation 
for  the  army  operating  in  Serbia  became  the  center 
and  base  of  a  new  defensive  front,  the  front  of  Mace- 
donia. 

The  Headquarters  of  the  Army  of  the  Orient  were 
permanently  established  in  that  city,  vast  spaces  were 
laid  out  around  the  city  as  camps  and  cantonments 
for  troops,  centres  for  supplies  of  ammunition,  rail- 
way material,  food,  clothing  and  base  hospitals.  Mar- 
tial law  was  established  in  the  city  and  the  local  police 
was  reinforced  by  hundreds  of  military  police  of  all 
the  nationalities  represented  in  General  Sarrail's  poly- 
glot army. 

The  city  of  Salonica  lies  at  the  bottom  of  a  basin 
formed  by  a  double  range  of  mountains.  These  moun- 
tain barriers  enclose  a  plain  shaped  like  a  fan  of 
which  the  city  was  the  centre,  while  the  principal  sticks 
are  formed  by  the  roads  and  railroads  running  to 
Monastir,  Uskub  and  Seres. 

257 


258       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

On  the  Southwest  of  Salonica  the  imposing  massif 
of  Mount  Olympus,  its  summit  snow-covered  all  the 
year  round,  towers  10,000  feet  toward  heaven.  Forty 
miles  to  the  west  the  Vermion  (or  Neagush)  ridge 
just  fails  to  link  up  the  Olympus  group  with  the  line 
of  mountains  formed  by  the  Greek  frontier.  This 
ridge,  running  due  north  and  south,  culminates  in 
the  Kara  Tash  (or  Black  Rock)  6,234  feet  high. 

The  outer  circle  of  mountains  runs  from  the  Vis- 
tritsa  (Haliakmon)  to  the  northwest  under  the  name 
of  "Nerechka"  (or  Peristeri)  intO'  Serbia,  then,  under 
the  name  of  Nidje  Planina,  to  the  Vardar.  On  this 
latter  range,  the  giant  of  the  chain,  the  Kaymakchalan, 
which  played  such  a  role  in  the  Serbian  offensive, 
towers  8,284  feet  into  the  clouds.  From  the  Vardar 
this  mountain  chain,  under  the  name  of  the  Belasitza 
and  Pirin  ranges,  nms  along  the  frontier  till  it  joins 
on  the  north  the  Bulgarian  Rhodope.  Toward  the 
Aegean  it  is  continued  by  the  lower  spurs  of  the 
Kruska  and  Beshik  and  the  rocky  peninsula  of  Chal- 
cidice. 

Through  the  rich  Bottiaian  plain  flow  the  rivers  Vis- 
tritza  to  the  southwest,  the  Bistritsa  to  the  west  and 
the  Vardar  to  the  north,  while  on  the  east,  between 
the  inner  and  outer  circles  of  mountains,  the  Struma 
flows  down  to  the  sea  through  the  rift  in  the  Belasitsa- 
Pirin  chain.  It  was  here  that  the  Greeks  constructed 
Fort  Rupel,  the  strongest  fortress  in  the  Kingdom, 
and  intended  to  close  the  pass  against  invasion  from 
Bulgaria. 

There  are  also  a  large  number  of  lakes  in  the  va- 


The  Salonica  Base  259 

rious  valleys  but  the  only  ones  of  importance  are 
Lake  Tachinos,  on  the  east,  through  which  the  Struma 
flows  to  the  sea  and  Lake  Langhaza  and  Beshik 
(Greek  Volvi)  which  almost  isolate  the  Chalcidice 
mountains  from  the  eastern  Macedonian  system. 

As  may  be  readily  understood  in  such  a  rugged 
country  communications  are  difficult.  To  the  north 
the  Valley  of  the  Vardar  with  its  single  line  of  rail- 
way furnished  Serbia  with  her  one  link  with  the 
Aegean.  The  ancient  Roman  road,  the  Via  Ignatia, 
on  its  way  west  from  Byzantium  to  Dyrrachium  (Du- 
razzo),  passed  through  Pella,  now  Yanitza,  the  capi- 
tal of  Philip  of  Macedon  and  the  still  older  capital 
of  Aigai  (Vodena)  and  then  turned  north  to  Fiorina, 
Monastir,  Okhrida  and  El-Bassan. 

This  ancient  Roman  road  is  to-day  the  only  easy 
exit  to  the  northwest  and  the  Salonica-Monastir  rail- 
way line,  after  making  a  detour  south  to  Veria  (the 
Berea  of  the  Acts  of  the  Apostles)  joins  it  near  Vo- 
dena and  then  follows  it  right  up  to  the  terminus  at 
Monastir. 

Towards  the  east  the  railway  line  from  Salonica 
runs  a  most  circuitous  course,  first  going  due  north 
to  Doiran,  then  east  to  Demirhissar  and  thence 
through  Seres  and  Drama  to  Constantinople. 

The  third  line  of  railway,  Salonica-Nish,  runs  due 
north  to  Karasuli  and  Ghevgeli  and  then  through  the 
Demirkapir  Ghevgeli  pass  to  Uskub.  Such  were  the 
main  topographical  features  of  the  territory  in  which 
the  Army  of  the  Orient  was  called  upon  to  operate 
and  the  meagre  means  of  communications  which  ex- 


26o       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

isted  at  this  moment  of  the  landing  of  General  Sar- 
rail's  force. 

The  city  itself  offered  few  advantages.  In  spite 
of  the  fact  that  Salonica  contained  over  200,cx)0  in- 
habitants the  city  proper  had  few  houses  that  had 
any  architectural  pretensions.  Except  for  the  sea 
front,  where  the  principal  hotels  were  situated,  the 
Place  de  la  Liberte,  where  the  Cercle  de  Salonica 
(the  principal  club  of  the  city)  and  the  chief  cafes 
were  found,  the  rue  Venizelos  and  the  Via  Ignatia,  the 
streets  were  narrow,  crooked  and  sordid,  the  typical 
thoroughfares  of  an  Eastern  city.  The  paving  is  of 
the  most  wretched  description  and  the  lighting  utter- 
ly inadequate.  Mud  and  filth  reign  supreme  and  on 
a  wet  day  the  streets  become  almost  impossible. 

A  contrast  to  the  city  proper  is  the  aristocratic 
Ouartier  des  Compagnes,  which  lies  just  beyond  the 
White  Tower,  the  chief  landmark  of  the  city,  which 
owes  its  existence  to  the  ancient  Venetians.  From  the 
White  Tower  half  way  to  Mikra  Bay  all  along  the 
sea  front  lay  a  succession  of  magnificent  Villas  owned 
by  the  millionaire  merchants  of  the  city.  Chief  among 
these  was  the  Villa  Allatini  in  which  the  late  Sultan 
Abdul  Hamud  was  imprisoned  after  the  Young  Turk 
revolution.  Here  also  were  the  consulates  of  the  va- 
rious nations  and  here  were  established  the  headquar- 
ters of  the  various  international  contingents  making 
up  the  Army  of  the  Orient.  The  Headquarters  of 
General  Sarrail  and  his  staff  was  housed  at  the  other 
extremity  of  the  town  near  the  docks. 

Like  many  Oriental  cities  Salonica,  seen  from  the 


The  Salonica  Base  261 

sea,  made  a  most  imposing  appearance.  The  build- 
ings on  the  water  front,  the  picturesque  White  Tower, 
the  scores  of  magnificent  Villas  in  the  Ouartier  des 
Campagnes,  with  their  beautiful  gardens  running 
down  to  the  beach,  the  many  tall  and  graceful  mina- 
rets of  the  numerous  mosques,  the  towers  and  cupo- 
las of  the  Greek  Orthodox  churches,  stood  out  against 
the  background  of  green  hills  topped  by  the  old  Turk- 
ish citadel.  It  was  only  when  the  traveller  landed 
and  had  to  traverse  the  narrow  dirty  and  crooked 
streets  that  he  realized  the  real  sordidness  behind  the 
magnificent  fagade. 

(I  speak  of  it  in  the  past  tense  for  of  the  mag- 
nificence and  wretchedness  of  Salonica  nothing  to- 
day remains.  The  whole  city  from  the  docks  to  the 
White  Tower  was  completely  destroyed  by  the  great 
conflagration  of  August,  191 7.  In  that  month  a 
fire  started  at  the  Via  Ignatia  on  the  eastern  side  of 
the  city  and  swept  a  lane  transversely  down  to  the 
White  Tower.  As  there  is  no  Fire  Department  in 
Salonica  worthy  of  the  name,  the  whole  existence 
of  the  city  was  menaced.  The  troops  of  the  garri- 
son and  the  sailors  from  the  allied  fleets  fought  the 
flames  valiantly  and  at  one  time  seemed  to  have  got 
the  fire  under  control.  Then  suddenly  the  "Vardar," 
the  north  wind  which  in  Salonica  blows  with  hurri- 
cane force,  sprang  up,  caught  the  fire  broadside  on 
and  caused  it  to  sweep  the  city  throughout  its  breadth. 
In  the  presence  of  a  catastrophe  of  this  magnitude 
human  courage  was  powerless  and  in  a  few  hours 
nothing  was  left  of  Salonica  but  a  mass  of  blackened 


262       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

ruins.  The  origin  of  the  fire  was  never  satisfactorily 
explained  but  there  is  good  reason  for  believing  that 
it  was  due  to  incendiarism,  the  more  so  as  enemy 
aeroplanes  made  an  attack  on  the  town  simultane- 
ously and  by  means  of  incendiary  bombs  helped  the 
work  of  the  flames.) 

As  may  be  imagined  such  a  city  did  not  offer  ideal 
accommodations  tO'  a  military  expedition  on  the  scale 
of  the  Salonica  one.  The  army  had  not  only  to  con- 
tend with  material  shortcomings  but  the  composition 
of  the  population  added  to  the  difficulties  of  the  High 
Command.  No  city  in  Europe  had  such  a  mixed 
population  as  Salonica.  One  half  was  composed  of 
Spanish  Jews  who  landed  there  some  centuries  ago, 
driven  out  of  Spain  by  the  fierce  persecutions  to  which 
they  were  subjected.  Though  they  had  ceased  all  re- 
lations with  Spain  since  that  time  they  still  contin- 
ued to  speak  the  Spanish  tongue.  Their  newspapers 
were  written  in  Spanish  printed  in  Hebrew  charac- 
ters. 

Under  the  easy-going  regime  of  the  Turks  the  Sa- 
lonica Jews  had  the  commerce  of  the  city  entirely  in 
their  hands.  Over  ten  thousand  of  them  were 
"dumne"  or  Jewish  converts  to  Mohammedanism, 
who  had  grafted  the  Talmud  on  the  Koran  in  a  curi- 
ous fashion  and  produced  a  religion  which  was  a 
curious  mixture  of  the  Jewish  and  Mohammedan 
faith.  These  "dumne"  took  an  active  part  in  Turkish 
politics  and  engineered  the  young  Turkish  revolution 
which  drove  Abdul  Hamid  from  his  throne.  It  was 
from  the  balcony  of  the  Cercle  de  Salonique  that  Field 


The  Salonica  Base  263 

Marshal  Chefket  Pasha,  Djavid  Bey  and  Enver  Bey 
proclaimed  the  revolution.  It  was  from  Salonica  that 
Chefket  Pasha's  army  corps  began  its  march  on  Con- 
stantinople that  cost  the  Sultan  his  throne. 

As  may  be  imagined  after  the  political  role  they 
had  played  the  Jewish  population  of  Salonica  did  not 
welcome  the  invasion  of  the  Greek  and  Bulgarian 
troops  of  the  Balkan  League  with  any  enthusiasm 
when,  in  1912,  after  defeating  the  Turks,  they  made 
their  triumphal  entry  into  Salonica.  They  still  less 
welcomed  the  invasion  of  Greek  merchants  and  busi- 
ness men  which  followed  the  military  one  and  which 
at  once  began  to  challenge  the  commercial  supremacy 
of  the  Jewish  community.  All  their  sympathies  were 
with  the  Turks  whose  easy  going  methods  of  gov- 
ernment had  given  them  ample  opportunity  to  monop- 
olize the  commerce  of  the  city. 

In  addition  to  Jews  and  Greeks  there  was  a  large 
Turkish  population,  about  40,000,  who  sympathized 
with  the  Germans  as  the  Allies  of  the  Sultan  and 
hoped  for  the  success  of  their  arms.  There  was  fur- 
ther a  large  Bulgarian  section  which  hoped  that  a 
German  victory  would  be  followed  by  a  Bulgarian 
annexation  of  Salonica. 

As  a  consequence  the  Army  of  the  Orient  at  Sa- 
lonica was  surrounded  by  a  hostile  population.  Thou- 
sands of  Greek,  Turkish  and  Bulgarian  spies  filled 
the  town.  Such  a  thing  as  military  secrecy  was  out 
of  the  question.  The  arrival  of  every  steamer  was 
watched  and  every  company  and  unit  counted  as  they 
landed.     In  every  cafe  scores  of  spies  listened  to  the 


264       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

conversation  of  men  back  on  leave  from  the  front. 
The  difficulty  of  keeping  the  plans  of  the  Allies  secret 
was  further  increased  by  the  fact  that  they  had  to 
be  communicated  to  the  Headquarters  of  the  French, 
British,  Serbian,  Italian  and  Russian  contingents, 
danger  of  leaking  being  thus  quintupled. 

In  the  whole  course  of  history  no  military  force 
was  ever  organized  under  such  extraordinary  condi- 
tions as  was  the  Army  of  the  Orient.  The  White 
Tower  became  a  second  Tower  of  Babel  round  which 
surged  Latin  and  Slav,  Mohammedan,  Christian  and 
Jew,  Anglo-Saxon,  Greek  and  Levantine.  Order  was 
kept  in  the  streets  by  British  policemen,  Italian  cara- 
binieri,  French  Gendarmes  and  Provost  Marshal's 
guards  drawn  from  the  Serbian  and  Russian  contin- 
gents. 

The  railway  lines  were  Austrian-owned  with  Greek 
employees.  The  Austrian  management  was,  of  course, 
at  once  eliminated,  but  it  was  difficult,  if  not  impos- 
sible, to  replace  the  Greek  personnel  by  trained  rail- 
way men  from  the  Allied  ranks.  At  no  time  were  the 
Greek  railway  employees  characterized  by  any  great 
efficiency  and  in  many  instances  their  loyalty  was 
more  than  doubtful.  The  rolling  stock  was  in  a  very 
dilapidated  condition  while  the  track  was  not  much 
better.  Derailings  were  of  daily  occurrence  and  col- 
lisions were  not  infrequent. 

Under  these  circumstances  if  the  Salonica  front 
had  had  the  whole-hearted  support  of  the  Entente 
Governments  the  difficulties  would  have  been  immense. 
But  the  problem  General   Sarrail  had  to  solve  was 


The  Salonica  Base  265 

rendered  doubly  difficult  by  the  fact  that  in  London, 
Paris  and  Rome  divided  counsels  prevailed  and  the 
support  accorded  to  the  expedition  was  of  the  most 
half-hearted  kind. 


CHAPTER  V 

THE   OPERATIONS THE   FIRST    PHASE 

BY  the  end  of  the  first  week  in  June,  as  I  have 
already  stated,  the  last  Serbian  battalion  was 
landed  at  Mikra  Bay  and  King  Peter's  army  was 
ready  to  take  the  field.  As  I  have  indicated  above, 
thanks  to  the  aid  furnished  by  the  Allies,  it  was, 
materially,  well  equipped  for  the  task  before  it.  The 
only  other  point  was  its  morale.  After  four  years 
of  constant  warfare,  after  its  struggle  with  the  Turks, 
the  Bulgarians,  the  Albanians,  the  Austrians  and  the 
Germans,  after  its  retreat  through  the  desolation  of 
Albania,  there  would  have  been  nothing  surprising 
if  its  courage  had  been  depressed  and  its  elan  blunted. 
But  the  contrary  was  the  case.  No  army  ever  entered 
on  a  campaign  with  higher  courage  or  a  grimmer 
determination  to  carry  its  colors  to  victory  than  did 
the  soldiers  of  Serbia  in  1916. 

What  was  the  cause  of  this  apparent  miracle?  It 
was  due  to  the  fact  that  during  the  two  years  of  war 
the  aspirations  of  Serbia  for  the  realization  of  the 
final  union  of  all  the  branches  of  the  Serbo-Croatian 
race  into  a  single  state  had  been  slowly  but  surely 
gaining  ground.  The  harder  the  blows  of  destiny, 
the  firmer  the  resolve  of  the  Serbs  to  achieve  this 
unity  of  their  race  or  die  in  the  attempt. 

266 


The  Operations — The  First  Phase    267 

For  it  must  be  remembered  that  the  four  and  a  half 
milHon  inhabitants  of  Serbia  are  only  a  fraction  of 
the  total  Serbian  race.  In  addition  to  the  half  mil- 
lion Serbs  inhabiting  Montenegro  there  were  yet  an- 
other eight  million  Serbo-Croats  (Serbs,  Croats  and 
Slovenes)  under  the  yoke  of  Austria.  For  half  a 
century  the  idea  of  achieving  Velika  Srhia  or  Greater 
Serbia  had  inspired  the  Serbs  of  the  Danubian  King- 
dom. This  meant  the  annexation  of  Bosnia-Herzego- 
vina, part  of  Dalmatia,  a  considerable  stretch  of  Hun- 
garian territory  and  the  Serbian-speaking  portion  of 
the  Banat  of  Temesvar. 

The  unjust  and  indefensible  action  of  the  Peace 
Conference  of  Berlin  in  1878,  in  handing  over  Bos- 
nia and  Herzegovina  to  Austria  for  temporary  "oc- 
cupation and  pacification,"  instead  of  allowing  these 
provinces  to  unite  with  their  Serbian  brothers-in- 
race,  had  roused  deep  resentment  in  Serbia,  a  resent- 
ment increased  and  strengthened  by  the  high-handed 
action  of  Austria-Hungary  in  1908  in  declaring  that 
she  would  no  longer  be  bound  by  the  treaty  of  Berlin 
and  would  purely  and  simply  annex  these  two  Serbian 
Provinces. 

From  that  date  a  latent  spirit  of  revolt  smouldered 
among  the  Austrian  Serbs.  This  the  Vienna  Govern- 
ment met  by  measures  of  rigorous  repression.  But 
though  every  Serb  desired  to  achieve,  sooner  or  later, 
the  national  unity,  the  Belgrade  Government  did  not 
take  active  steps  to  bring  about  any  revolutionary 
movement  on  Austrian  soil.     National  unitv  still  re- 


268       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

mained  a  pious  aspiration,  much  as  Italia  irredenta 
had  been  for  the  ItaHans  for  half  a  century. 

And  it  might  have  long  remained  so  but  for  the  ac- 
tion of  Austria.  That  Power  made  the  act  of  a  fanat- 
ical youth  of  1 8  years  of  age,  who  threw  the  fatal 
bomb  at  Sara-jevo  which  killed  the  Archduke  Franz 
Ferdinand  and  his  consort,  the  pretext  for  forcing  a 
war  on  Serbia. 

At  first  the  only  ambition  of  the  Serbians  was  to 
defend  their  native  soil,  but  as  the  war  went  on  every 
Serb  began  to  realize  that  his  country  had  embarked 
on  a  duel  to  the  death  with  the  Dual  Monarchy.  No 
half  measures  were  possible.  If  the  Austrian  Em- 
pire remained  in  existence  after  the  war  Serbia,  as 
an  independent  state,  would  have  ceased  to  exist.  The 
defeat  of  Austria  meant  at  least  the  creation  of 
Greater  Serbia. 

The  knowledge  that  it  was  a  fight  to  the  death 
gradually  grew  on  every  Serbian-speaking  man, 
woman  and  child,  a  fight  from  which  they  would 
either  emerge  a  free  and  united  people  or  be  forever 
crushed  under  the  heels  of  Austria.  The  revolu- 
tionary movement  for  a  Greater  Serbia  began  to 
spread  l>eyond  the  frontiers  of  Austria  to  the  country 
of  their  brothers-in-race  the  Croats  and  Slovenes  and 
the  idea  the  unity  of  the  entire  Serbo-Croatian,  or 
Jugoslav,  race  rapidly  took  form. 

A  number  of  eminent  Jugoslavs  succeeded  in  reach- 
ing London  where  they  formed  a  National  Committee 
presided  over  by  Dr.  Ante  Trumbitch.  This  commit- 
tee got  into  touch  with  the  Serbian  Government  at 


The  Operations — The  First  Phase   269 

Corfu  and  in  June  1916  the  Pact  of  Corfu  was  drawn 
up  the  Magna  Chart  a  of  tJie  future  Kingdom  of  the 
Serbs,  Croats  and  Slovenes.  By  it  the  national  as- 
pirations of  the  Serbs,  Croats  and  Slovenes  were  crys- 
tallized into  a  definite  project.  It  was  this  final  and 
definite  realization  of  all  that  they  had  fought  for,  all 
that  they  were  fighting  for,  that  inspired  the  army 
which  landed  at  Salonica.  Two  years  before  their 
only  idea  had  been  to  successfully  defend  their  coun- 
try against  Austrian  aggression,  in  19 16  they  were 
fighting  to  bring  about  the  unity  of  their  race,  a  re- 
sult that  could  only  be  achieved  by  the  complete  de- 
feat of  the  Central  Powers  and  their  Allies. 

Though  their  numbers  had  shrunk  to  a  hundred 
thousand  bayonets  the  Serbs  entered  on  the  struggle 
with  courage  undismayed  and  with  whole-hearted 
confidence  in  the  cause  for  which  the  Allies  were  fight- 
ing. Beyond  the  blue  line  of  the  mountains  lay  their 
beloved  Serbia  and  they  swore  to  reconquer  it  or 
perish  in  the  attempt.  It  was  the  spirit  of  the  "nation 
that  can  never  die,"  the  indomitable  resolve  to  bring 
about  the  triumph  of  right. 

When,  then,  General  Sarrail  assigned  to  the  Ser- 
bian army  its  sector  on  the  Macedonian  front  the 
troops  responded  with  enthusiasm  and  alacrity,  in 
spite  of  the  fact  that  it  was  plain  that  to  the  army 
of  King  Peter  was  given  the  most  arduous  part  of 
the  task  of  the  Army  of  the  Orient. 

As  soon  as  the  Serbian  amiy  arrived  at  Mikra 
Bay  General  Sarrail  began  the  final  constitution  of 
the   Macedonian    front.      To  the    British    continsrent 


270       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

under  the  command  of  Lieutenant-General  G.  F.  Milne 
(who  had  on  May  9th  succeeded  General  Sir  Bryan 
Mohon)  was  entrusted  the  defence  of  the  part  of 
the  front  to  the  east  and  north-east  of  Salonica.  On 
June  8th,  the  date  of  the  arrival  of  the  last  contin- 
gent of  Serbian  troops  at  Mikra  Bay,  General  Milne's 
forces  began  to  occupy  advanced  positions  along  the 
right  bank  of  the  Struma  from  Lake  Butkovo  to  the 
northern  extremity  of  Lake  Tachinos.  After  the 
demobilization  of  the  Greek  army  in  the  last  weeks 
of  July  the  front  held  by  the  British  had  been  extend- 
ed to  Chai  Agiz  where  the  Struma  River  enters  the 
Gulf  of  Orfano.  Later  on,  between  July  20th  and 
August  1 2th,  General  Milne  took  over  the  line  south 
and  west  of  Lake  Doiran  in  preparation  for  the  gen- 
eral offensive  that  was  to  coincide  with  Roumania's 
entrance  into  the  war. 

The  French  contingent  occupied  the  centre  of  the 
front,  the  line  held  by  it  running  from  Lake  Doiran 
to  a  point  west  of  the  Vardar  where  it  joined  up  with 
the  sector  held  by  the  Serbian  army.  The  French 
sector  was  the  shortest  of  the  three  but  it  was  perhaps 
strategically  the  most  important  as  it  extended  across 
the  Valley  of  the  Vardar,  the  direct  line  of  route  for 
an  invading  army  marching  on  Salonica.  The  French 
contingent  opposed  a  composite  Germano-Austro- 
Bulgarian  army  under  the  command  of  General  von 
Winckler.  The  British  and  Serbian  contingents  were 
at  first  faced  by  purely  Bulgarian  armies  under  the 
command  of  General  Lodoroff,  though  the  army  fac- 


The  Operations — The  First  Phase    271 

ing  the  Serbians  was  also  later  strongly  reinforced  by 
German  troops. 

The  Serbian  contingent,  as  I  have  already  stated, 
consisted  of  three  armies  and  an  independent  cavalry 
division.  The  First  Army,  consisting  of  the  Morava 
and  Vardar  Divisions,  was  under  the  command  of 
the  Voivode  (Field-Marshal)  Mishitch.  The  Division 
of  the  Morava  was  commanded  by  Colonel  C.  Milo- 
vanovitch  and  the  Division  of  the  Vardar  by  Colonel 
Lutsakovitch. 

The  Second  Army,  under  the  Command  of  the  Voi- 
vode Stepanovitch,  was  made  up  of  the  Shumadia  and 
Timok  Divisions.  The  Division  of  the  Shumadia 
had  as  its  commander  Colonel  Zivko  Pavlovitch,  who 
had,  in  the  preceding  campaign  in  Serbia,  been  As- 
sistant-Chief of  the  Headquarters  Staff  under  Field 
Marshal  Putnik.  The  Division  of  the  Timok  was 
under  the  command  of  General  Militch. 

The  Third  Army,  composed  of  the  Drina  and  Dan- 
ube Divisions,  was  under  the  orders  of  General  Mi- 
losh  Vasitch.  The  Division  of  the  Drina  was  under 
the  command  of  Colonel  Smilavitch  and  the  Division 
of  the  Danube  under  that  of  Colonel  Angelovitch. 

The  whole  Serbian  army  was  under  the  Supreme 
Command  of  the  Prince-Regent  Alexander  with  Gen- 
eral Boyovitch  as  Chief  of  the  Headquarters  Stafif. 

Though  the  occupation  of  the  sector  assigned  to  the 
Serbian  army  did  not  take  place  till  the  month  of 
June  it  was  preceded  by  certain  operations  by  the  Ser- 
bian Volunteer  corps  which  had  been  established  and 
organized  at   the   Chalcidice   camp.      This  corps,   on 


272       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

May  9,  191 5,  left  that  camp  and  six  days  later  it  was 
distributed  along  the  Front  Donji-Kalcnik-Comji- 
Kalenik-Kleshtina-Chechovo-Vukovik-Link.  Part  of 
its  forces  protected  the  route  Florina-Korcha.  The 
special  task  of  this  sector  was  to  prevent  communica- 
tions and  smuggling  of  munitions  and  provisions  be- 
tween the  Bulgars  and  Greeks  east  of  Lake  Prespa 
and  Korcha  and,  at  the  moment  of  the  concentration 
and  operations,  to  cover  the  left  wing  and  flank  of 
the  army. 

A  month  later  the  Serbian  contingent  began  to  take 
up  the  positions  assigned  to  it.  On  June  8th  the 
Shumadia  Division  was  sent  to  take  up  a  position  near 
the  Dogandi  railway  bridge  over  the  Vardar  and  oc- 
cupied that  front  on  June  nth.  On  June  loth  the 
Serbian  Volunteer  Battalion  was  dispatched  to  Kor- 
cha with  the  object  of  closing  all  routes  leading  from 
Albania  to  Korcha  and  vice-versa  so  as  to  complete 
the  work  of  the  Volunteer  corps  and  absolutely  close 
these  routes  to  all  communication  and  smuggling. 

On  July  4th  the  Shumadia  and  Drina  Divisions 
were  sent  to  the  border  front,  the  Shumadia  Division 
holding  the  Kozhuch-Kovil-Kukurus-Shozar-D.  Ro- 
divo  line  while  the  Drina  Division  held  the  G.  Rodivo- 
Meteric-Tepesi-Chegan-Gornichevo  front. 

The  mission  of  these  two  Divisions,  together  with 
the  previously  dispatched  Volunteer  Corps  and  Volun- 
teer Battalion,  was  to  cover  the  concentration  of  the 
Serbian  army. 

General  Sarrail  paid  this  army  the  high  compliment 
of  assigning  to  it  as  its  field  of  operations  the  most 


The  Operations — The  First  Phase    273 

formidable  portion  of  the  total  front,  the  towering 
Moglene  mountain  range,  a  natural  fortress  of  almost 
impregnable  strength.  This  mountain  range  is  the 
natural  barrier  defending  the  plain  of  Monastir. 

The  average  height  of  the  mountains  is  about  S-OO^ 
feet,  though  at  several  points  this  is  exceeded,  the 
cloud-capped  summit  of  the  gigantic  Kaymakchalan 
towering  up  nearly  10,000  feet  above  the  plain.  These 
mountains  are,  for  the  most  part,  bare  masses  of  gran- 
ite, denuded  of  all  vegetation  and  rising  step  by  step 
by  precipitous  clif¥s,  up  which  an  attacking  force  has 
to  climb,  often  on  hands  and  knees. 

It  was  in  this  region  that  on  July  25,  19 16,  the 
Serbian  army  began  the  attack  on  the  Bulgarians.  On 
that  day  the  Division  of  the  Shumadia  drove  the  en- 
emy back  from  certain  positions  on  the  Moglene 
range,  notably  the  villages  of  Pojar  and  Strujisino. 
On  the  following  day  the  Bulgarians  brought  up  re- 
inforcements and  for  twenty-eight  hours  a  violent  bat- 
tle raged.  Both  sides  repeatedly  attacked  with  the 
bayonet  but  in  spite  of  every  effort  the  Bulgarians 
were  powerless  to  regain  the  lost  positions. 

The  vigor  and  the  precision  of  the  Serbian  artillery 
fire  proved  too  much  for  the  enemy.  But  at  the  same 
time  the  success  of  the  Serbs  was  only  partial,  for 
though  they  succeeded  in  gaining  a  footing  on  the 
rocky  sides  of  the  mountain  range,  the  Bulgarians 
still  held  the  summit.  The  operations  in  the  last  week 
of  July  were  therefore  chiefly  of  a  preparatory  char- 
acter and  paved  the  way  for  the  second  phase. 

During  the  first  half  of  August  there  was  a  lull  in 


274       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

the  fighting,  which  the  Bulgarians  made  use  of  to 
entrench  themselves  strongly  and  line  their  front  with 
barbed  wire  entanglements. 

Hostilities  were  resumed  on  August  17th.  On  that 
date  the  Bulgarians  began  a  furious  offensive  along 
the  whole  front.  This  was  developed  in  two  direc- 
tions. 

On  the  one  hand  they  attacked  the  Serbian  posi- 
tions on  the  Moglene  range,  held  by  the  Shumadia 
and  Timok  Divisions,  trying  to  hurl  them  back  on  to 
the  plain,  and  on  the  other  they  attacked  the  troops 
of  the  First  Army  holding  Fiorina  with  the  object 
of  driving  them  from  that  point  to  the  other  side  of 
Lake  Ostrovo. 

The  Bulgarian  plan  was  revealed  by  documents 
found  on  Bulgarian  officers  taken  prisoners.  The  at- 
tack was  entrusted  to  the  First  Bulgarian  Army.  Its 
mission  was  to  drive  the  Serbs  from  their  position  on 
the  Moglene  range  and  to  occupy  a  line  running  from 
the  Lake  of  Ostrovo  along  the  base  of  the  mountains. 

If  the  plan  had  succeeded  the  Serbian  army  would 
have  been  forced  to  fall  back  on  the  entrenched  camp 
of  Salonica,  as  on  the  plain  it  would  not  have  found 
positions  capable  of  prolonged  defence.  This  offen- 
sive was  begun  just  at  the  moment  Roumania  entered 
the  war  and  the  evident  desire  of  the  Bulgarians  was 
to  inflict  a  crushing  defeat  on  the  Serbians  so  as  to 
be  able  to  send  troops  from  the  Macedonian  front 
to  reinforce  its  army  facing  the  Roumanians  on  the 
Dobrudja  front. 

The   effort,    however,   proved   disastrous   to   them. 


The  Operations — The  First  Phase    275 

Not  only  did  their  attack  on  the  positions  on  the  Ka- 
tunatz  and  Pojar,  held  by  the  Second  Serbian  army, 
though  executed  with  over  7,000  men,  fail  completely, 
but  the  Bulgarians  were  driven  from  certain  of  their 
positions  by  the  furious  counter  attacks  of  the  Serbs. 

By  August  2 1st  they  had  been  driven  almost  com- 
pletely from  Mount  Vetrenik  and  Mount  Kukurus. 
All  they  held  were  a  few  positions  on  the  crests.  The 
Serbian  success  on  the  Vetrenik  was  particularly  im- 
portant as  it  is  one  of  the  highest  points  on  the 
Moglene  range. 

On  August  22d  the  slopes  of  the  mountain  were  in 
the  hands  of  the  nth  Serbian  Regiment,  belonging  to 
the  Shumadia  Division,  while  the  crests,  which  termi- 
nated in  a  precipitous  cliff,  known  later  as  the  "Rock 
of  Blood"  on  account  of  the  sanguinary  struggle  for 
its  possession,  wxre  still  held  by  the  enemy.  The  fact 
that  King  Peter's  soldiers  stormed  their  way  up  the 
rocky  sides  of  these  precipitous  mountains  speaks  vol- 
umes for  their  dash  and  tenacity  and  the  brilliant 
fashion  in  which  they  were  led. 

The  Bulgarian  losses  were  very  great.  On  the  first 
day  of  their  offensive  they  had  400  killed  and  600 
wounded.  The  following  day  entire  regiments  were 
decimated;  Bulgarian  dead  lay  piled  up  by  hundreds. 
Their  losses  w^ere  so  great  that  the  troops  were  com- 
pletely discouraged  and  they  practically  abandoned  the 
offensive. 

This  successful  defence  of  the  Serbs  was  of  the 
greatest  importance.  If  the  Bulgarians  had  succeeded 
in  piercing  the  lines  of  the  Second  Serbian  armv  the 


276       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

position  of  the  Serbian  troops  in  the  neighborhood  of 
the  Lake  of  Ostrovo  would  have  been  critical. 

The  Bulgarians  were,  however,  much  more  success- 
ful in  the  direction  of  Fiorina.  They  were  able  to 
seize  that  town,  as  well  as  the  important  position  of 
Malka-Nidge  which  lies  behind  it.  Fiorina  was  onh- 
occupied  by  a  weak  advance  guard  furnished  by  the 
First  Serbian  army,  which  was  unable  to  resist  the 
onslaught  of  the  Bulgarian  main  body.  A  Serbian 
Division,  sent  to  the  assistance  of  the  troops  holding 
Fiorina,  for  several  days  resisted  the  attack  of  two 
and  a  half  Bulgarian  divisions. 

Finally  the  Serbian  troops  were  forced  to  fall  back 
on  the  country  behind  the  Lake  of  Petroko  and  the 
Lake  of  Ostrovo.  The  intention  of  the  Bulgarians 
was  to  prevent  the  Serbs  establishing  their  position  at 
this  point  and  to  drive  them  to  the  opposite  side  of 
the  Lake  of  Ostrovo. 

But  as  soon  as  they  came  in  contact  with  the  main 
Serbian  forces  the  Bulgarians  met  with  such  obstinate 
resistance  that  their  operations  were  brought  to  a 
standstill.  They  had,  therefore,  to  content  themselves 
with  their  partial  successes  at  Fiorina  and  Malka- 
Nidge.  But  as  they  lost  10,000  to  12,000  men  in  the 
operations  their  success  was  dearly  bought. 

The  Serbs  also  lost  heavily  in  the  desperate  struggle, 
having  about  5,000  men  hors  de  coriibaf.  But  their 
partial  success  at  Fiorina  did  not  justify  the  Bulga- 
rians taking  a  single  battalion  from  the  Macedonian 
front  to  aid  their  troops  facing  the  Roumanians  in  the 


The  Operations — The  First  Phase    277 

Dobrudja.  This  marked  the  end  of  the  second  phase 
of  the  operations  on  the  Macedonian  front. 

The  third  phase  was  entered  upon  on  September 
1 2th.  On  that  date  the  First  Serbian  Army,  rein- 
forced by  French  and  Russian  troops,  undertook  a 
strong  offensive  toward  Fiorina.  At  the  same  time 
the  Second  Army  began  an  attack  on  the  Moglene 
front,  but  this  was  merely  a  demonstration,  the  real 
attack  being  on  the  Fiorina  line.  After  two  days  of 
artillery  preparation  the  Serbs,  by  a  vigorous  attack, 
carried  the  Bulgarian  positions,  not  only  at  Malka- 
Nidge  but  also  at  the  Mola  Reka. 

The  positions  at  Malka-Nidge  had  been  strongly 
fortified  by  the  Bulgarians  on  plans  drawn  up  by  Ger- 
man staff  officers.  These  were  a  succession  of 
trenches  with  redoubts  for  the  guns  and  lines  of 
barbed  wire  entanglements. 

The  assault  of  the  Serbs  was  made  with  such  irre- 
sistible force  and  the  surprise  of  the  Bulgarians  was 
so  great  that  the  latter  were  hurled  back  in  disorder, 
abandoning  40  guns  and  a  large  quantity  of  material 
of  all  kinds.  The  losses  of  the  Bulgarians  at  this 
point  were  estimated  at  about  2.000  men. 

It  was  not  a  mere  check  entailing  the  loss  of  a  po- 
sition but  it  was  the  defeat  and  destruction  of  a  por- 
tion of  the  Bulgarian  army. 

Driven  back  from  Malka-Nidge  the  Bulgarians  re- 
tired on  the  line  Krusograd-Sovie-Starkov  Grob-Kay- 
makchalan,  which  lies  for  the  most  part  along  the 
Greco-Serbian  frontier  line.  But  the  Serbs  did  not 
give  the  Bulgarians  any  rest  even  on  this  new  line. 


278       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

On  September  17th  they  gained  a  footing  on  the  Kay- 
makchalan  and  on  the  i8th  they  occupied  the  highest 
crest.  It  was  then  that  the  long  and  bloody  struggle 
for  the  complete  possession  of  the  mountain  began. 

The  Bulgarians  had  always  attached  great  impor- 
tance to  the  position.  During  the  whole  of  the  sum- 
mer they  had  worked  on  its  fortification  till  it  bristled, 
from  base  to  summit,  with  lines  of  trenches  and 
barbed  wire  entanglements,  so  that  this  position,  nat- 
urally extremely  strong — at  its  highest  point  it  reached 
over  8,000  feet  and  on  the  eastern  slope  it  is  almost 
precipitous — was   made   seemingly    impregnable. 

The  Bulgarians  knew  that  as  long  as  they  held  the 
Kaymakchalan  they  could  prevent  the  Serbs  from  de- 
bouching on  the  Czerna  Reka  (Black  River)  and  on 
the  plain  of  Monastir,  either  by  Fiorina  or  by  the 
Moglene  front.  The  Kaymakchalan  was,  therefore, 
the  central  point  of  the  Bulgarian  defence  on  the  east- 
em  side  of  the  Czerna  Reka. 

When,  therefore,  the  Third  Serbian  army  succeeded 
in  seizing  the  highest  crest  of  the  Kaymakchalan, 
\yhich  was  at  the  same  time  the  most  elevated  point 
on  the  whole  front,  it  became  a  necessity  for  the  Bul- 
garians to  drive  them  from  it  at  any  cost.  With  this 
in  view  on  September  23d  they  resumed  the  struggle 
with  fresh  troops  brought  from  four  different  divi- 
sions and  began  a  desperate  attack  on  the  Serbian  po- 
sitions on  the  Kaymakchalan. 

The  attack  began  on  September  24th  and  reached 
its  fiercest  phase  on  September  26th.  This  was,  up  to 
that  time,  the  bloodiest  battle  of  the  whole  campaign. 


The  Operations — The  First  Phase   279 

The  result  of  the  Bulgarian  effort  was,  however,  small. 
The  enemy  only  succeeded  in  getting  a  footing  in  the 
Serbian  advanced  trenches.  This  small  success  had, 
however,  been  so  costly  that  they  were  incapable  of 
further  effort. 

They  were  completely  exhausted  by  their  vain  at- 
tempts on  the  Serbian  positions.  Their  companies 
of  280  men  had  shrunk  to  90  bayonets  and  of  fifteen 
officers  per  battalion  only  four  were  left.  The  2d 
Bulgarian  Infantry  Regiment  had  73  officers  and 
3,000  men  placed  hors  de  combat. 

In  addition  to  being  exhausted  the  Bulgarians  were 
demoralized.  The  soldiers  refused  to  make  further 
assaults  which  they  saw  would  only  end  in  their  being 
annihilated.  It  is  known  positively  that  the  First  Bat- 
talion of  the  45th  Bulgarian  Regiment  refused  to  obey 
when  ordered  to  attack  the  Serbian  positions. 

Under  these  circumstances  the  power  of  King  Fer- 
dinand's troops  to  resist  the  Serbian  counter-attack 
may  be  imagined.  On  September  30th  the  Serbs  were 
in  complete  possession  of  the  Kaymakchalan.  The 
Bulgarians  fled  in  confusion  abandoning  five  guns. 
For  some  days  there  was  some  intermittent  fighting 
around  some  of  the  smaller  hills  in  the  neighborhood 
of  the  Kaymakchalan,  but  after  that  mountain  was 
captured  the  enemy  were  less  able  to  maintain  the  line 
they  had  occupied  after  their  retreat  from  Malka- 
Nidge. 

On  October  3d  they  voluntarily  abandoned  the  po- 
sitions of  Starkov  Grob,  Sovicet  and  Krusograd.  The 
Serbian  troops,  which  were  following  close  on  their 


28o       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

heels,  crossed  the  Greek  frontier,  passed  on  to  Serbian 
soil  and  debouched  on  the  Czerna  Reka,  which  they 
crossed  at  various  points  reaching  the  Bulgarian  lines 
which  directly  defended  Monastir. 

The  French  and  Russians  advanced  successfully  to 
the  north  of  Fiorina  and  soon  the  whole  of  Greek 
Macedonia  on  the  right  bank  of  the  Vardar,  with  the 
exception  of  the  crest  of  that  part  of  the  Moglene 
mountains  against  which  the  Second  Serbian  army 
was  operating,  was  completely  cleared  of  Bulgarians. 
The  Serbian  troops  descended  on  to  the  plain  of  Mon- 
astir and  began  the  struggle  for  the  possession  of  that 
city. 

The  resistance  of  the  Serbs  was  the  more  merito- 
rious in  view  of  the  fact  that  at  Ostrovo  the  Bulga- 
rians had  the  numerical  superiority  and  on  the  Mo- 
glene front  the  country  was  in  their  favor.  They  held 
the  crests  of  the  mountains  while  the  Serbs  had  to  at- 
tack the  slopes. 

The  Malka-Nidge  and  Kaymakchalan  positions 
were  so  fortified  that  they  could  without  exaggera- 
tion be  described  as  natural  fortresses.  It  is  true  that 
the  Serbian  attacks  were  powerfully  supported  by 
artillery,  but  the  heavy  Serbian  losses  bore  eloquent 
testimony  to  the  fact  that  they  were  not  entirely  ar- 
tillery battles. 

Up  to  the  September  23d,  that  is  to  say  before  the 
last  effort  of  the  Bulgarians  to  recapture  the  Kay- 
makchalan, the  Serbian  losses  amounted  to  10,000 
killed  and  wounded. 


CHAPTER  VI 

THE  GREEK  BETRAYAL  AND  THE  SALONICA  REVOLUTION 

WHILE  the  Serbian  Army  was  carrying  on  its 
offensive  in  the  sector  assigned  to  it,  events 
were  happening  at  the  other  extremity  of  the  front 
which  did  much  to  neutrahze  its  relative  success. 

Simultaneously  with  the  Serbian  offensive  active 
operations  were  ordered  on  the  French  and  British 
fronts.  The  object  of  all  these  operations  was,  as  I 
have  stated,  to  facilitate  Roumania's  entry  into  the 
war  by  so  engaging  the  Bulgarian  troops  in  Macedonia 
as  to  render  it  impossible  for  them  to  detach  any  of 
their  forces  to  reinforce  their  army  facing  the  Rou- 
manian frontier.  The  intervention  of  Roumania  took 
place  on  August  2y,  191 6.  The  offensive  of  the 
French  contingent  was  inaugurated  on  August  20th 
by  a  heavy  bombardment  of  the  town  of  Doiran.  So 
violent  was  this  that  the  Bulgarians  were  forced  to 
abandon  Hill  227  to  the  south  of  the  town  which  the 
French  at  once  occupied  and  with  it  the  railway  sta- 
tion of  Doiran.  The  next  few  days  were  taken  up 
with  a  heavy  artillery  duel,  powerful  howitzers  play- 
ing an  important  role  on  both  sides. 

The  next  move  of  the  French  was  the  capture  of 
"Tortoise  Hill"  near  to  the  village  of  Doldjeli,  which 
lies  a  mile  and  a  half  to  the  southwest  of  Doiran. 


282       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

Then  a  sudden  change  came  over  the  whole  situa- 
tion. The  German  Staff  was  perfectly  well  informed 
as  to  the  condition  of  the  Army  of  the  Orient  and 
what  it  could  do.  They  knew  that  the  persistent  re- 
fusal of  the  Allies  (for  which  the  British  Imperial 
Staff  was  chiefly  to  blame)  to  reinforce  the  Salonica 
front  had  left  General  Sarrail  without  the  power  of 
undertaking  an  offensive  on  a  really  large  scale  and 
pushing  it  home.  Not  only  were  his  forces  numeri- 
cally insufficient  but  the  material  at  his  disposal  left 
much  to  be  desired.  Guns  which  were  no  use  on  the 
Western  front  were  considered  good  enough  for  Sa- 
lonica. Thus  the  Army  of  the  Orient  had  numbers 
of  Debange  guns,  which  though  at  one  time  an  ex- 
cellent weapon,  could  no  longer  be  regarded  as  up  to 
date,  modern  artillery.  Many  of  the  mountain  guns 
given  to  the  Serbs  were  of  an  old  pattern,  quite  in- 
ferior to  those  in  the  hands  of  the  enemy. 

The  insufficiency  of  the  numbers  of  his  troops  ren- 
dered it  difficult  if  not  impossible  to  so  hold  the  line 
as  to  guard  against  a  sudden  attack  in  force  on  any 
given  point.  The  enemy  a  few  days  before  the  entry 
of  Roumania  into  the  war  took  advantage  of  this  to 
invade  Greece  in  three  main  groups.  On  the  eastern 
sector  they  advanced  south  from  Demirhissar,  the 
Greek  troops  withdrawing  before  them.  The  Greek 
forts  of  Lise  and  Starshiste  surrendered  on  the  first 
summons  without  offering  the  slightest  resistance. 
Two  days  later  the  enemy  communique  stated  that  the 
Vrundi    Balkan     (or    Shartiya    Planina)     had    been 


The  Salonica  Revolution        283 

crossed  and  that  the  Bulgarian  armies  were  advancing 
on  Seres. 

Meanwhile,  on  the  eastern  frontier,  the  Bulgarians 
crossed  the  Nestos  (or  Mesta  Su)  in  the  "Kaza"  of 
Sari  Shaban  and  sent  out  an  advance  guard  to  re- 
connoitre the  road  to  Kavalo. 

Further  west,  on  the  central  sector  of  the  Vardar 
Valley,  a  simultaneous  advance  was  made  by  General 
von  Winckler.  In  spite  of  repeated  attacks,  however, 
his  troops  failed  to  recapture  the  village  of  Doldjeli. 
Both  there  and  on  the  Struma  British  troops  checked 
the  Bulgarian  advance. 

On  August  loth  General  Milne  sent  out  a  brigade 
of  cavalry,  accompanied  by  a  battery  of  field  artillery, 
which  carried  out  a  "reconnaissance  in  force."  They 
found  a  fairly  strong  contingent  of  the  enemy  on  the 
Barakli-Prosenik  line.  After  a  sharp  engagement  the 
reconnoitring  force  withdrew  to  the  right  bank  of 
the  Struma. 

On  August  2 1st,  in  spite  of  the  enemy's  opposition 
the  Anghista  bridge  was  destroyed  by  British  yeo- 
manry, engineers  and  cyclists,  but  after  this  operation 
no  further  obstacle  was  put  in  the  way  of  the  Bul- 
garian invasion  of  Eastern  Macedonia.  The  British 
forces  withdrew  to  the  Struma-Lake  Tachinos  line 
and  left  to  the  Greek  armies  garrisoning  the  country 
the  task  of  dealing  with  the  invader. 

Kavalo  was  the  headquarters  of  the  4th  Greek  army 
corps.  The  6th  Division,  under  the  command  of  Gen- 
eral Bairas,  was  stationed  at  Seres.  In  the  temporary 
absence  of  the  general  this  division   was  under   the 


284       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

command  of  Colonel  Christodonlou.  The  advanced 
fort  of  Phea  Petra  was  the  first  place  to  offer  resist- 
ance to  the  Bulgarian  armies  on  the  road  between 
Demirhissar  and  Krushavo.  The  commandant  of  the 
fort,  Major  Kondhilis,  refused  to  surrender  it  to  the 
Bulgarians  and  lost  his  life  in  a  fruitless  effort  to  de- 
fend it.  This  gallant  act  on  his  part  was  not  without 
its  effect  on  the  garrison  of  Seres.  Colonel  Christo- 
donlou and  the  men  of  the  6th  Division  put  up  a  good 
fight  in  which  they  claimed  to  have  inflicted  heavy 
loss  on  the  enemy,  themselves  losing  two  officers  and 
100  men. 

The  only  result  of  this  gallant  action  in  Athens  was 
to  cause  King  Constantine  to  relieve  Colonel  Chris- 
todonlou of  his  command  and  to  issue  strict  orders 
against  any  further  armed  resistance  to  the  invader. 

Unfortunately  these  orders  were  strictly  obeyed. 
The  Bulgarians  advanced  without  resistance  to  the 
environs  of  Drama  and  Kavalo.  For  some  days  they 
hesitated  about  seizing  these  towns,  but  on  August 
26th  they  occupied  the  forts  around  Kavalo  but  were 
promptly  shelled  by  the  guns  of  the  British  fleet,  which 
brought  about  a  pause  in  their  operations. 

In  the  meantime  Colonel  Christodonlou,  who  had 
succeeded  in  escaping  from  the  Bulgarians,  arrived  in 
Kavalo  with  two  regiments.  But  he  did  not  find 
himself  in  congenial  company.  The  commander  of 
the  4th  Army  Corps,  Colonel  Khatzopoulos,  was  one 
of  those  Greeks  to  whom  even  the  Bulgarians  and  the 
Germans  were  less  distasteful  than  M.  Venizelos.  He 
faithfully  carried  out  the  orders  of  the  Athens  Gov- 


The  Salonica  Revolution        285 

eminent  that  no  resistance  should  l)e  offered  to  the 
invading  anny.  On  September  12th,  therefore,  he 
surrendered  with  the  forces — 8,000  men — under  his 
command.  The  Bulgarian  troops  entered  Kavalo. 
Colonel  Christodonlou  with  1,500  of  his  men  and  a 
large  number  of  the  civilian  inhabitants  took  refuge 
on  the  British  and  French  warships  in  the  harbor  and 
were  conveyed  to  Thasos  and  Salonica. 

The  4th  Greek  Army  corps  was  disarmed  and  in- 
terned in  "honorable"  captivity  in  Seres,  whence  they 
were  soon  after  removed  to  Germany  and  interned 
at  Gorlitz  in  Silesia. 

This  disgrace  to  Greek  arms  was  more  than  even 
the  population  of  Athens  could  stand  and  a  danger- 
ous excitement  made  itself  manifest  in  the  capital. 
In  order  to  calm  this  and  to  conciliate  the  indignant 
Powers  of  the  Entente  General  Dousmanis,  the  Chief 
of  the  General  Staff,  who  had  given  the  actual  orders 
for  the  surrender  to  the  Bulgarians,  was  given  45 
days'  leave  of  absence  and  was  temporarily  replaced 
by  General  Moskhopoulos,  who  up  to  then  had  been 
in  command  of  the  3d  Army  Corps  at  Salonica.  Colo- 
nel Metaxas,  assistant  chief  of  Staff,  was  also  relieved 
of  his  functions. 

But  these  pretended  functions  deceived  no  one  and 
indignant  meetings  were  held  in  Athens  at  which 
M.  Venizelos  and  other  patriotic  leaders  took  part. 
At  one  of  them,  held  on  August  27th,  the  ex-Premier 
adjured  King  Constantine,  even  at  the  eleventh  hour, 
to  put  himself  at  the  head  of  the  nation  and  defend 
the  national  honour  and  the  territory  of  Greece.     M. 


286       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

Venizelos  at  the  same  time  warned  him  that  "if  our 
cry  is  disregarded  we  shall  then  see  what  we  can  do 
to  prevent  the  ruin  into  which  we  are  being  drawn. 
We  cannot  look  on  fatalistically  while  the  catastrophe 
approaches  without  taking  means  to  counteract  it." 

To  this  appeal,  however,  King  Constantine  turned 
a  deaf  ear.  The  military  clique  gave  him  its  whole- 
hearted support.  At  the  same  time  the  "Reservist 
League,"  which  it  had  formed  out  of  the  more  unde- 
sirable elements  of  the  population,  was  let  loose  on  the 
streets  of  Athens  to  spread  a  reign  of  terror  among 
the  citizens. 

The  excitement  at  Salonica  was  even  greater  than 
in  Athens.  Indignation  meetings  were  held  daily  at 
the  White  Tower,  but  for  the  first  day  or  two  those 
taking  part  in  them  contented  themselves  with  noisy 
demonstrations  and  comminatory  resolutions.  It  was 
not  until  August  30th  that  things  came  to  a  head. 
When  I  came  down  to  lunch  at  the  restaurant  of 
the  Olympus  Palace  Hotel  on  the  afternoon  of  that 
day,  I  was  informed  that  a  revolution  was  to  start 
at  two  o'clock.  The  idea  of  a  revolution  starting  at 
a  given  hour  seemed  a  trifle  "Opera  Comique"  to  me, 
but  a  number  of  excited  individuals  at  an  adjacent 
table  were  pointed  out  to  me  as  the  leaders  of  the 
movement.  They  were  lunching  in  haste  and  discuss- 
ing volubly  in  Greek,  some  of  them  drawing  up  hur- 
ried proclamations  on  the  back  of  the  menu  cards. 
Two  o'clock  came  and  they  still  had  not  reached  the 
cofifee  and  liqueur  stage  and  we  were  told  the  revolu- 
tion was  postponed  till  three  o'clock. 


The  Salonica  Revolution        287 

Finally  at  that  hour  things  began  to  get  under  way. 
Excited  crowds  thronged  the  streets  and  in  a  short 
time  loud  shouting  proclaimed  that  something  was 
happening.  A  few  minutes  later  about  a  couple  of 
hundred  Cretan  gendarmes,  led  by  a  lieutenant,  came 
marching  down  Venizelos  street.  This  was  the  "revo- 
lution" en  route  for  the  Headquarters  of  General 
Sarrail  to  inform  him  that  Salonica  no  longer  owed 
allegiance  to  King  Constantine.  The  "revolution" 
50  far  had  been  of  the  "rose  water"  order.  Twenty- 
four  hours  later  it  took  a  somewhat  more  tragic  turn 
when  the  Cretan  gendarmes  marched  to  the  barracks 
to  bring  out  the  Greek  Infantry  regiment  in  garrison 
there.  The  regiment  refused  to  join  the  movement  and 
slammed  the  gates  in  the  faces  of  the  revolutionists. 

The  latter  promptly  opened  fire,  to  which  the  garri- 
son replied.  The  only  damage  done  was  the  killing 
of  a  couple  of  soldiers  and  a  passing  civilian  struck 
by  a  stray  bullet.  As  the  revolutionaries  had  no  ar- 
tillery they  were  unable  to  do  much  damage,  but  they 
surrounded  the  barracks  and  prevented  all  egress.  As 
the  troops  inside  had  neither  food  nor  water  things 
soon  reached  a  crisis.  The  Colonel  in  command  sent 
word  to  General  Sarrail  that  he  would  surrender  to 
the  French  but  not  to  the  revolutionaries.  A  regi- 
ment of  Zouaves  was  accordingly  sent  to  the  barracks 
to  receive  his  surrender  and  disarm  his  men.  A  cer- 
tain number  declared  they  would  join  the  revolution- 
aries. The  rest  were  disarmed,  placed  on  board  a 
couple  of  steamers,  shipped  off  to  the  Piraeus,  and  the 
revolution  was  a  fait  accompli.     A  Provisional  Gov- 


288       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

ernment  was  installed  at  the  head  of  which  was  Colo- 
nel Zimvrakakis. 

A  short  time  afterwards  news  was  received  that 
M.  Venizelos  accompanied  by  Admiral  Koundouriolis 
and  General  Danglis  had  left  Athens  and  landed  on 
Crete  and  proclaimed  the  revolution.  Chios,  Mytilene 
and  other  islands  joined  the  movement.  On  October 
9th  M.  Venizelos,  Admiral  Koundouriolis  and  Gen- 
eral Danglis  landed  in  Salonica  and  established  their 
Government.  Forty-eight  hours  later  this  declared 
war  on  Bulgaria  and  proceeded  to  recruit  a  volunteer 
army  to  fight  alongside  the  Army  of  the  Orient. 

Meanwhile  there  had  been  some  resumption  of  mili- 
tary activity  on  the  French  and  British  sectors.  On 
September  loth  the  British  crossed  the  Struma  both 
north  and  south  of  Lake  Tachinos.  A  number  of 
small  villages  were  occupied  and  the  Northumberland 
Fusiliers  drove  the  Bulgarians  out  of  Nevoljen  but 
afterwards  retired  and  the  activities  of  the  force  grad- 
ually died  down.  The  net  result  of  the  total  opera- 
tions had  been  a  brilliant  success  for  the  Serbians  on 
the  western  part  of  the  line,  which,  however,  for  want 
of  reserves  they  were  unable  to  push  home,  and  the 
Bulgarian  invasion  of  Drame,  Seres  and  Kavalo. 
Thanks  to  the  defection  of  King  Constantine's  troops 
this  had  been  a  success,  but  as  the  British  and  French 
troops  on  the  Struma  and  Doiran  fronts  had  more 
than  held  their  own  the  Bulgarian  advance  was 
brought  to  a  standstill  and  something  like  the  previ- 
ous position  of  stalemate  again  became  the  order  of 
the  day. 


CHAPTER  VII 

THE   POSITION    AND  OPERATIONS   OF   THE  SECOND 
SERBIAN    ARMY 

AFTER  the  capture  of  Fiorina  and  the  forcing  of 
the  Bulgarian  positions  on  the  Kaymakchalan, 
I  profited  by  a  lull  in  the  operations  of  the  First  and 
Third  armies  to  visit  the  positions  on  the  right  flank 
of  the  Serbian  front  held  by  the  Second  army  under 
the  command  of  Field  Marshal  Stepanovitch. 

To  reach  these  I  left  Salonica  by  the  Monastir  rail- 
way, my  destination  being  Vertekop,  a  station  about 
40  miles  from  Salonica  as  the  crow  flies  but  about 
70  by  rail  on  account  of  the  extraordinary  detour 
made  by  this  line,  which  first  runs  southwest  to  Veria 
and  then  turns  at  an  acute  angle  due  north  toward 
Vodena. 

The  first  difficulty  was  to  find  the  train  at  the  Sa- 
lonica station.  It  was  supposed  to  start  at  midnight 
so  that  it  had  to  be  found  in  the  darkness  of  the  night. 
As  there  were  over  a  score  of  tracks  each  packed  with 
flat  trucks  and  freight  cars  this  alone  was  an  adven- 
ture. As  all  the  tracks  were  filled  from  end  to  end, 
this  meant  climbing  over  the  buffers  of  coupled  freight 
cars  and  splashing  about  in  the  puddles  of  water  that 
usually  lay  between  the  tracks.     On  account  of  the 


290      From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

danger  of  enemy  air  raids  the  whole  station  was  in 
black  darkness  and  as  most  of  the  employees  only 
spoke  Greek  it  was  no  easy  matter  to  locate  anything. 

The  train  when  I  did  find  it  consisted  of  an  end- 
less succession  of  flat  cars,  box  cars  and  cattle  trucks, 
the  latter  used  for  moving  the  horses  and  mules  nec- 
essary at  the  front.  Up  near  the  engine  was  a  single 
passenger  coach  which  had  certainly  seen  better  days. 
Window  glass  was  conspicuous  by  its  absence  and 
one  of  the  doors  would  not  shut  and  had  to  be  tied 
with  string  to  keep  it  closed.  As  six  passengers  were 
placed  in  each  compartment  the  possibility  of  sleep 
was  reduced  to  a  minimum.  Though  all  the  passen- 
gers were  punctually  on  board  at  midnight  it  was 
nearly  four  o'clock  before  we  got  under  way.  The 
average  speed  was  about  seven  or  eight  miles  an  hour 
and  the  stops  were  frequent  and  interminable.  As  the 
line  was  single  track  we  were  side-tracked  at  nearly 
every  station  to  let  empty  trains  coming  from  the 
front  pass.  The  result  was  that  it  took  us  over  ten 
hours  to  cover  the  sixty  miles  separating  us  from 
Vertekop. 

Vertekop  was  the  chief  munition  "dump"  for  the 
Second  Serbian  Army  and  all  round  the  station  were 
high  piles  of  shells,  munition  boxes,  tinned  food  and 
war  material  of  every  kind.  A  few  hundred  yards 
outside  the  station  was  a  huge  base  hospital  where  the 
tired  traveller,  forced  to  wait  over  in  Vertekop,  could 
count  on  being  received  with  cordial  hospitality.  This 
hospital  was  run  by  the  British. 

The  station  was  run  by  a  triumvirate  of  station 


Operations  of  the  Second  Army    291 

masters,  French,  Serbian  and  British.  As  I  was  bound 
for  Dragamantzi,  the  Headquarters  of  the  Second 
Army,  a  matter  of  ten  miles  away,  I  had  to  telephone 
for  a  riding  horse  and  a  wagon  for  my  baggage.  Un- 
til those  arrived  I  sat  in  the  office  of  the  Serbian  sta- 
tion master  and  drank  endless  cups  of  the  weak  tea 
which  is  always  on  tap  in  the  Serbian  army  and 
watched  the  pitiless  rain  pouring  down  on  the  piles 
of  war  material  accumulated  all  around  the  station. 

A  constant  stream  of  military  wagons,  motor 
driven  and  horse  drawn,  kept  pouring  into  the  station 
yard  to  load  up.  Most  of  the  work  was  done  by 
German  and  Bulgarian  prisoners  who  worked  under 
the  kindly  eye  of  some  grey-bearded  old  Serbian 
Checcha  or  soldiers  of  the  third  "ban."  The  predom- 
inating feature  was  mud,  sometimes  watery,  some- 
times clayey,  but  omnipresent.  All  round  the  station 
it  was  churned  into  a  quagmire  a  couple  of  feet  deep 
through  which  trucks  and  wagons  tore  their  way  with 
difficulty. 

After  a  couple  of  hours  wait  my  horse  and  wagon 
arrived  and  I  faced  the  pitiless  down-pour.  As  I 
jogged  along  at  a  slow  trot  (all  the  horse  could  do  in 
the  sea  of  mud),  I  could  realize  the  immense  difficulty 
of  keeping  the  army  in  the  field  supplied.  Every  now 
and  then  I  would  come  across  an  army  truck  com- 
pletely bogged  with  half  a  score  of  sweating  drivers 
working  to  extricate  it  from  the  "slough  of  despond." 
The  language  they  used  about  Macedonia,  its  climate 
and  the  war  generally,  was  sulphurous. 

The  mountains  begin  right  behind  Vertekop  so  that 


292       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

the  road  to  Dragamantzi  winds  among  a  succession 
of  bleak,  granite-faced  hills.  Once  these  are  passed 
one  debouches  on  a  second  plain  on  the  northern  ex- 
tremity of  which,  fifteen  miles  away,  the  mountains 
of  the  Moglene  range  tower  into  the  clouds. 

No  one  dropping  into  Dragamantzi  would  ever 
have  imagined  that  the  peaceful  little  village  was  a 
centre  of  warlike  activities.  Its  six  hundred  inhabi- 
tants were  mostly  Turks.  All  day  long  from  the  vil- 
lage schoolhouse,  where  a  couple  of  score  of  children 
sat  crosslegged  round  the  teacher,  came  a  droning 
chant  as  they  all  repeated  their  lessons  in  unison.  The 
only  sign  of  the  military  occupation  was  when  a  staff 
automobile  would  shoot  along  the  street  carrying  offi- 
cers to  or  from  the  front.  The  only  other  sign  of 
war  was  the  continuous  drone  of  the  heavy  gims  which 
echoed   from  the  distant  mountains. 

In  a  meadow  near  the  exit  of  the  village  a  score 
of  tents  were  pitched.  A  narrow  stream  meandered 
through  it,  crossed  by  a  simple  plank  bridge.  On  the 
other  side  a  solitary  tent  was  pitched.  This  was  the 
home  of  Field-Marshal  Stepanovitch,  commander  of 
the  Second  Serbian  Army,  the  most  taciturn  soldier 
in  the  service  of  King  Peter.  When  he  was  not  in 
his  tent,  immersed  in  his  maps  and  plans,  he  wan- 
dered alone.  The  only  persons  he  ever  spoke  to  were 
the  little  village  children  who  little  knew  that  the  man 
in  the  shabby  uniform  was  one  of  the  greatest  gen- 
erals in  an  army  that  counts  many  soldats  d' elite. 

From  the  camp  stretched  a  network  of  telegraph 
and  telephone  wires  running  to  the  headquarters  of 


Operations  of  the  Second  Army    293 

the  divisions  and  over  the  plains  to  the  mountains 
where  they  Hnked  up  brigades,  regiments  and  bat- 
taHons  fighting  amid  the  snow  clad  summits  and  con- 
trolled the  thunderous  diminuendo  and  crescendo  of 
scores  of  batteries  of  every  calibre.  Every  now  and 
then  the  peaceful  quiet  would  be  broken  by  the  shrill 
ring  of  a  telephone  bell  or  the  tick-tack  of  a  telegraph 
instrument.  And  yet  from  this  scene  of  perfect  peace 
a  fierce  life  and  death  struggle  was  being  directed  in 
the  mountains  a  score  of  miles  away  and  the  combat 
surged  back  and  forth  in  response  to  the  will  of  the 
taciturn  soldier  bent  over  his  map  in  his  solitary  tent. 

At  mess,  in  a  whitewashed  building  that  had  once 
been  a  stable,  furnished  with  a  table  composed  of  a 
couple  of  planks  laid  on  trestles,  I  heard  the  latest 
reports  of  the  long  and  weary  struggle  going  on  in 
the  distant  mountains.  The  position  was  one  of  stale- 
mate. Each  side  had  dug  itself  in  and  while  the  Serbs 
were  strong  enough  in  artillery  to  checkmate  any  at- 
tempt of  the  Bulgarians  to  advance,  they  were  not  nu- 
merically strong  enough  to  try  conclusions  with  the 
bayonet. 

Next  day  I  rode  on  to  Soubotzko.  the  Headquar- 
ters of  the  Division  of  the  Shumadia.  No  one  drop- 
ping into  Soubotzko  would  have  imagined  that  it 
was  one  of  the  storm  centres  of  the  Balkan  cam- 
paign. It  presented  a  picture  of  peace  such  as  would 
have  gladdened  the  heart  of  any  pacifist.  The  two 
streets  that  form  the  village,  the  shorter  one  at  right 
angles  to  the  other,  running  along  a  sluggish  stream 
of  doubtful  purity,  were  lined  with  a  few  wretched 


294       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

shops  in  which  soap,  petroletim,  sugar  and  a  few  other 
strictly  necessary  articles  were  to  be  found.  Luxuries 
there  were  none,  unless  one  counts  the  inevitable  tins 
of  concentrated  milk  and  a  few  stray  boxes  of  sardines 
in  that  category.  At  the  angle  where  the  streets  join, 
the  solitary  mosque  of  the  village,  and  a  marble  foun- 
tain with  a  Turkish  inscription,  formed  the  last  souve- 
nirs of  the  regime  of  the  Sultan. 

Here,  once  a  week,  the  populace  of  the  surrounding 
country  poured  in  on  foot  and  on  donkeys  to  hold  a 
market.  The  goods  on  display  did  not  have,  however, 
a  total  value  of  more  than  a  hundred  francs  or  so, 
consisting  mainly  of  onions,  chestnuts,  paprika  and 
such  oddments  as  pins,  needles  and  thread.  I  saw  one 
red-turbaned  merchant  spend  the  whole  day  cross- 
legged  in  front  of  a  couple  of  dozen  boxes  of  matches. 
As  these  sold  for  a  cent  apiece,  even  if  he  had  dis- 
posed of  his  whole  stock  (which  he  certainly  did  not), 
his  gross  receipts  would  not  have  been  twenty-five 
cents.  The  populace  seemed  almost  to  have  realized 
the  commercial  conditions  of  that  Sandwich  Island 
where  the  inhabitants  lived  by  taking  in  each  other's 
washing. 

From  time  to  time  a  grey-bearded  man  with  a  red 
fez  climbed  on  to  the  marble  fountain  and  made  a 
speech.  At  first  I  thought  he  was  a  political  agitator, 
as  he  spoke  with  apparent  eloquence  and  conviction, 
but  I  discovered  he  was  only  the  town  crier  making 
known  the  latest  municipal  decrees.  From  the  freez- 
ingly  cold  reception  given  to  his  pronouncements,  I 


Operations  of  the  Second  Army    295 

imagine  he  was  proclaiming  some  fresh  taxation,  or 
something  of  the  sort. 

From  9  o'clock  in  the  morning  hundreds  of  peas- 
ants, the  men,  Turkish  fashion,  mounted  on  donkeys, 
and  the  women  walking  on  foot,  poured  into  the  vil- 
lage. Even  the  small  boys  rode,  while  their  mothers 
walked  behind,  the  outward  tribute  to  the  predomi- 
nant position  of  the  male.  The  feminist  movement 
has  a  long  distance  to  go  in  Macedonia.  The  chief 
business  of  the  males  on  market  days  seemed  to  be 
to  sit  cross-legged  on  the  ground  in  the  various  cafes 
(wooden  sheds  with  beaten  earth  floors  open  to  the 
streets)  and  consume  an  endless  number  of  micro- 
scopic cups  of  coffee. 

As  the  immense  majority  of  the  people  are  Ma- 
hometans, 90  per  cent  of  them  wore  either  fezes  or 
turbans.  But  their  language  was  Serbian,  though 
some  of  them  had  also  a  slight  knowledge  of  Greek. 
It  is  a  curious  thing  that  in  Greek  Macedonia  I  met 
with  every  type  of  language  except  Greek.  I  have 
seen  Roumanian  villages,  Bulgarian  villages  and  Ser- 
bian villages,  but  never  a  Greek  one.  That  the  ma- 
jority of  the  population  was  Mahometan  is  explained 
by  the  fact  that  by  Turkish  law  only  Mahometans 
could  own  land.  After  the  conquest  of  Macedonia 
by  the  Turks  the  native  Serbian  populatiop  went  over 
to  Mahometanism  to  save  their  possessions,  and  their 
descendants  are  now  followers  of  the  Prophet. 

The  village  lies  in  the  centre  of  the  plain.  Five 
miles  away  towers  the  range  of  mountains  which  sep- 
arates Greek  Macedonia   from   Serbia.     Opposite  lie 


296       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

Mounts  Kukurus,  Vetrenik,  Katunatz  and  Pojar, 
while  to  the  left  towered  the  cloud-capped  Kaymak- 
chalan,  the  giant  of  the  range.  The  summits  of  the 
mountains  were  covered  with  snow,  which  glittered 
in  the  brilliant  winter  sunshine. 

No  one  could  believe  that  on  the  forty-mile  front 
to  right  and  left  half  a  million  men  were  in  death 
grips  and  that  the  faces  of  the  adjacent  mountains 
were  scarred  by  lines  of  trenches  and  pitted  by  bat- 
teries and  redoubts.  The  only  reminder  of  war  was 
the  dull  boom  of  the  guns  all  along  the  front.  Now 
and  again  a  salvo  from  the  heavy  French  battery  a 
mile  or  so  away  would  shake  the  windows  and  stop 
for  an  instant  the  chattering  of  the  red-turbaned 
crowd.  But  an  instant  later  business  resumed  its  sway 
and  peace  once  more  reigned. 

And  yet  the  village  is  the  headquarters  of  a  division. 
If  one  looked  along  the  street  and  across  the  fields 
one  saw  on  every  hand  long  lines  of  field  telegraphs 
radiating  like  a  spider's  web  in  every  direction.  If 
one  traced  them  to  their  source  one  found  they  ran  to 
what  in  time  of  peace  was  the  primitive  town  hall  of 
the  village.  Here,  in  its  whitewashed  rooms,  devoid 
of  all  furniture  but  tables  and  chairs,  sat  the  colonel^ 
commanding  the  division,  Colonel  Zhivko  Pavlovitch 
(one  of  the  most  famous  soldiers  in  the  Serbian  army, 
who  fought  with  distinction  during  five  years'  cease- 
less war),  and  his  staff.  All  day  long  telephone  and 
telegraph  wires  were  humming — wires  that  ran  all 
over  the  plain  to  batteries  of  every  calibre  or  climbed 
to  trenches  away  up  above  the  snow  line  in  the  moun- 


Operations  of  the  Second  Army    297 

tains.  To  the  rear  they  controlled  railways  and  mo- 
tor transport,  which  kept  moving  up  an  endless  line 
of  supplies  and  munitions. 

In  the  evening  in  the  messroom  (a  whitewashed 
room,  once  a  village  shop),  one  found  the  thirty-odd 
officers  composing  the  staff.  The  room  was  lighted 
by  a  couple  of  oil  lamps  and  half  a  dozen  candles. 
These  shone  on  the  bronzed  faces  of  men  who  had 
been  helping  to  make  history  in  the  Balkans  for  the 
last  half  decade.  There  was  not  a  single  man  who 
had  not  been  in  a  score  of  battles,  who  had  not 
tramped  the  Balkans  from  the  Danube  to  the  gates 
of  Constantinople,  from  Nish  to  Durazzo. 

The  spirit  that  reigned  was  essentially  democratic. 
No  army  on  active  service  is  better  disciplined  than 
the  Serbian  army.  In  no  army  is  more  demanded 
from  every  officer,  from  sub-lieutenant  to  the  com- 
mander-in-chief. But  apart  from  matters  of  service, 
the  spirit  is,  as  I  have  said,  essentially  democratic. 
The  officers  were  of  all  ages.  The  chief  of  staff,  who 
sat  next  to  me,  was  a  colonel  of  thirty-four  years  of 
age.  On  the  other  side  of  Colonel  Pavlovitch  was 
a  grey-haired  colonel  of  artillery,  who  bore  a  singu- 
lar resemblance  to  the  late  Field-Marshal  von  Moltke. 
The  lieutenant-colonel  at  the  head  of  the  intelligence 
bureau  was  little  over  thirty ;  others,  again,  had  grown 
grey  in  service.  But  the  impression  they  all  made 
was  that  they  knew  thoroughly  what  they  had  to  do 
and  how  to  do  it. 

Until  late  in  the  night  the  windows  of  the  head- 
quarters were  ablaze  with  light.     Every  move  on  a 


298       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

twenty-mile  front  was  being  controlled  with  the  ease 
and  precision  with  which  a  pianist  plays  his  instru- 
ment, while  the  diminuendo  and  crescendo  of  the  dis- 
tant batteries  fell  and  rose  like  notes  played  by  a  vir- 
tuoso. 

A  couple  of  days  later  I  rode  out  with  Colonel 
Loukitch,  the  chief  of  the  Military  Police  of  the  di- 
vision, whose  duties  naturally  took  him  at  all  times 
over  the  whole  battle  line  to  visit  the  front.  It  fell 
to  him  to  examine  Bulgarian  prisoners  and  deserters 
(the  latter  averaged  ten  a  day  for  the  division  alone, 
a  proof  that  the  morale  of  the  enemy  was  not  all  it 
should  be),  to  keep  check  on  enemy  espionage  and 
to  direct  the  spies  sent  out  from  the  Serbian  Head- 
quarters. To  the  base  of  the  Pojar  we  had  a  ride  of 
about  seven  miles  across  the  plain.  A  great  part  of 
the  way  lay  over  the  dry  bed  of  the  river,  which  in 
winter  time  shrinks  to  a  stream  a  few  yards  wide 
while  in  spring,  when  the  mountain  snows  begin  to 
melt,  it  spreads  out  over  a  couple  of  miles.  As  the 
whole  bed  of  the  river  is  covered  with  water-worn 
pebbles  it  was  not  easy  to  negotiate  on  horseback  the 
smooth  stones  rolling  under  the  hoofs  of  our  mounts. 

When  we  reached  the  centre  of  the  plain  one  could 
form  a  good  idea  of  the  difficulties  facing  the  Second 
Serbian  army.  To  our  right  towered  Mount  Vetre- 
nik,  its  lofty  summit  terminating  in  a  precipitous 
cliff,  christened  by  the  Serbs  the  "Rock  of  Blood," 
on  account  of  the  toll  of  lives  the  attack  on  it  had 
cost  both  them  and  the  enemy.  In  the  centre  rose 
Mount   Katunatz   and   alongside   it   the   Kukurus   or 


Operations  of  the  Second  Army    299 

"Corn  Cob  Mountain,"  so  named  from  its  peculiar 
shape. 

On  the  left  rose  the  Pojar,  a  mountain  rising  in 
three  sections,  the  first  extremely  steep,  while  the 
two  summits  above  were  approached  by  an  easier 
slope.  Of  this  range  the  whole  of  the  mountains  were 
in  the  hands  of  the  Serbs,  with  the  exception  of  the  ex- 
treme summit  of  the  Vetrenik.  That  rocky  eyrie  was 
still  in  the  hands  of  the  Bulgarians.  All  day  long  we 
could  see  the  shells  from  the  Serbian  and  French 
heavy  batteries  in  the  plain  splintering  on  its  rocky 
sides.  The  flashes  from  the  mountain  artillery  on  the 
steep  sides  of  the  Kukurus  and  Katunatz  also  showed 
that  the  Serbs  were  bombarding  the  enemy  on  the 
mountains  in  the  rear  which  were  invisible  from  the 
plain. 

It  was  nearly  noon  when  we  reached  the  village 
at  the  base  of  the  mountain.  As  is  customary  in  this 
region  every  village  exists  in  duplicate,  the  village 
in  the  plain  and  the  village  in  the  mountain.  In  the 
winter  time  the  villagers  inhabit  the  plain,  but  when 
the  spring  comes  and  the  snows  have  melted  they 
move  up  to  the  village  above,  to  pasture  their  flocks 
and  herds.  As  we  rode  up  to  the  upper  village  we 
met  a  steady  stream  of  peasants  carrying  their  primi- 
tive household  furniture,  making  for  the  village  be- 
low as  the  ever  descending  snow  line  gave  notice  that 
winter  was  at  hand  and  that  it  was  time  to  move 
if  they  did  not  want  to  be  snow  bound. 

Their  change  of  residence  in  1916  must  have  been 
a  much  easier  job  than  in  former  years,  for  they  had 


300       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

at  their  disposal  the  well-made  mountain  road  con- 
structed by  the  Serbs  to  bring  up  their  guns,  instead 
of  the  sheep  paths  which  formerly  constituted  their 
only  highway.  Up  this  road  was  marching  a  steady 
column  of  pack  animals  and  light  military  carts  car- 
rying munitions  and  food  to  the  troops  above.  The 
mountain  village  proved  a  picturesque  old  place.  A 
score  of  houses  stood  in  gaunt  ruins.  The  village,  it 
appears,  had  shown  too  much  hospitality  to  the  Bul- 
garians and  as  a  punishment  the  French  had  burnt 
a  part  of  it.  Apart  from  this  it  had  suffered  but  little, 
though  the  remains  of  formidable  Bulgarian  trenches 
with  barbed  wire  entanglements  could  be  seen  running 
right  and  left.  These  had  been  stormed  at  the  point 
of  the  bayonet  by  the  Serbs  a  fortnight  before. 

This  had  enabled  the  troops  of  the  division  to  push 
on  to  the  summit  above  where  they  were  now  facing 
the  Bulgarian  entrenchments.  Here  we  found  half 
a  score  of  batteries  in  position  facing  the  enemy  bat- 
teries on  the  Dobra  Polie,  a  position  separated  from 
the  summit  of  the  Pojar  by  a  gentle  valley  (hence 
the  name  Dobra  Polie  or  "Good  Meadow")  about  two 
miles  broad.  In  the  Serbian  entrenchments  we  were 
on  the  frontier  line,  the  Pojar  being  Greek  and  the 
Dobra  Polie  Serbian  territory. 

While  we  were  enjoying  the  generous,  if  primitive, 
hospitality  of  Colonel  Panta  Djoukitch  (food  and 
drink  are  at  a  premium  on  a  shell-swept  mountain 
top)  the  Bulgarians  favoured  us  with  a  full  dress  bom- 
bardment which  lasted  a  couple  of  hours  but  which 
did  no  damage,  most  of  the  shells  exploding  harm- 


Operations  of  the  Second  Army     301 

lessly  on  the  mountain  side.  The  position  was  evi- 
dently one  of  stalemate;  the  Serbs  were  not,  in  suffi- 
cient force  to  risk  an  attack  on  the  Dobra  Polie  but 
at  the  same  time  they  disposed  of  an  artillery  for- 
midable to  discourage  any  attack  on  the  part  of  the 
enemy.  Some  of  it,  however,  could  hardly  be  de- 
scribed as  modern,  consisting  as  it  did  of  French  guns 
dating  back  twenty  years.  But  inferior  as  it  w^as,  the 
Serbs  knew^  how  to  use  it  to  advantage,  as  the  Bul- 
garians found  to  their  cost. 

The  Bulgarians  were  evidently  having  a  busy  day 
of  it  as  they  favored  us  with  a  few  shells  on  our 
homeward  ride  across  the  plain,  but  beyond  making 
the  stones  fly  in  the  dry  river  bed  they  did  little  dam- 
age. 

Three  days  later  I  went  to  visit  the  positions  on  the 
summit  of  Mount  Vetrenik.  As  the  whole  of  the 
road  winding  up  the  face  of  the  mountain  was  under 
fire  from  the  Bulgarian  guns  and  even  rifles  on  the 
upper  plateau,  the  ascent  had  to  be  negotiated  in  the 
darkness.  We,  therefore,  first  rode  to  Bachovo,  the 
village  at  the  base  of  the  mountain  where  we  were 
to  dine  and  sleep  till  two  a.  m.,  when  we  were  to 
begin  the  four  hours  climb. 

Our  hosts  were  three  military  surgeons  of  the  am- 
bulance installed  in  the  village  and  a  couple  of  officers 
in  charge  of  the  transport.  As  the  village  was  under 
fire  we  had  to  dine  by  the  light  of  a  couple  of  gutter- 
ing candles  on  the  second  floor  of  a  peasant's  house. 
Heavy  horse  blankets  covered  the  windows  in  order 
to  prevent  the  gleam  of  our  primitive  illumination  be- 


302       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

traying  us  to  the  enemy  batteries  above  us.  During  the 
whole  meal  we  could  hear  ceaseless  rifle  fire  from  the 
summit  of  the  mountain.  I  thought  that  an  attack 
must  be  in  progress,  but  my  hosts  explained  to  me 
that  as  the  Serbian  and  Bulgarian  trenches  on  the 
summit  are  only  about  fifty  yards  apart,  to  prevent 
their  being  rushed  in  the  darkness,  each  side  kept  pour- 
ing a  ceaseless  rifle  fire  into  no-man's-land  in  order 
to  establish  a  barrage.  This  was  costly  in  ammunition, 
but  as  the  total  Serbian  garrison  on  the  summit  was 
less  than  500  men  they  could  take  no  chances. 

Every  now  and  then  the  French  heavy  battery  a 
couple  of  hundred  yards  in  our  rear  would  send  a  shell 
whizzing  just  over  our  heads.  An  instant  later  we 
could  hear  the  shattering  crash  as  it  burst  among  the 
rocks  4,000  feet  above  us. 

When  coffee  was  served  one  of  my  hosts  asked  me 
if  I  was  fond  of  music  and  on  my  answering  in  the 
affirmative  he  proposed  to  bring  in  a  Gipsy  soldier, 
who  was  a  violinist  of  talent  in  addition  to  possess- 
ing a  fine  tenor  voice,  and  the  company  cook,  who, 
it  appeared,  was  a  virtuoso  on  the  accordion.  They 
were  brought  in  and  for  two  and  a  half  hours  we  had 
one  of  the  most  extraordinary  and  original  concerts 
it  has  ever  been  my  lot  to  hear. 

The  Gipsy  violinist  certainly  did  not  belie  his  repu- 
tation. He  was  a  Serbian  Kubelik  as  far  as  mastery 
of  his  instrument  was  concerned,  while  the  cook  ele- 
vated the  accordion  to  the  dignity  of  an  organ.  As 
the  part  of  the  room  in  which  they  played  was  plunged 
in   complete  darkness   the   effect   was   extraordinary. 


Operations  of  the  Second  Army     303 

And  all  the  while  they  played  there  was  the  accom- 
paniment en  sourdine  of  the  pom-pom-pom  of  the 
ceaseless  rifle  fire  from  the  mountain  top,  while  every 
now  and  then  the  melody  would  be  drowned  by  the 
scream  of  a  six-inch  shell  from  the  heavy  battery 
passing  a  few  feet  above  our  heads.  The  repertoire  of 
the  two  virtuosi  turned  out  to  be  an  extremely  large 
one,  including  selections  from  "Cavalleria  Rusticana" 
and  "I  Pagliacci."  As  for  the  soldier's  voice  it  de- 
served all  the  praise  his  captain  gave  it.  He  and  his 
comrade  further  proved  their  quickness  of  ear  by  exe- 
cuting the  "Battle  Hymn  of  the  Republic"  and  "Way 
Down  upon  the  Suwanee  River,"  after  I  had  hummed 
them  over  to  them  a  couple  of  times,  with  a  precision 
and  muestrio  that  Sousa  might  have  envied. 

So  long  indeed  did  this  impromptu  concert  last  that 
we  gave  up  all  idea  of  going  to  bed  and  sat  up  till 
our  horses  arrived  for  our  climb  to  the  summit.  The 
ride  was  uneventful,  except  for  the  fact  that  it  was 
a  bit  nerve-racking  to  skirt  precipices  in  the  Egyptian 
darkness  and  to  be  deprived  of  the  soothing  influences 
of  a  pipe  or  a  cigarette.  But  as  the  glow  from  a 
cigarette  is  visible  a  thousand  yards  away,  we  had  to 
abstain  from"  the  consolation  of  "M}-  Lady  Nicotine." 

It  was  six  o'clock  in  the  morning  when  we  arrived 
at  the  last  stage  of  our  journey,  a  point  about  500 
feet  below  the  upper  plateau.  As  the  dawn  was  ap- 
proaching and  it  was  not  advisable  that  the  Bulga- 
rians on  the  heights  above  us  should  catch  sight  of 
us,  we  decided  to  leave  our  horses  and  climb  straight 
up  the  mountain  side,  instead  of  running  the  risk  of 


304      From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

being  surprised  by  daylight  by  continuing  to  follow 
the  winding  road  we  were  on.  We  accordingly  dis- 
mounted and  sent  back  our  horses  under  the  charge 
of  the  orderlies  and  began  the  last  part  of  the  ascent 
on  foot.  After  forty-five  minutes  stiff  climbing  we 
arrived  at  the  Serbian  lines  where  we  were  welcomed 
with  true  Serbian  hospitality  by  Colonel  Tomsitch, 
the  officer  commanding  the  battalion  of  the  nth  Regi- 
ment, holding  the  summit.  After  partaking  of  the  in- 
evitable coffee,  we  began  a  tour  of  the  positions.  At 
that  season  of  the  year  it  was  risky  work  moving  about 
the  plateau  as  it  was  denuded  of  the  cover  furnished 
by  the  foliage  of  the  trees  in  summer  and  fall.  The 
absence  of  foliage  enabled  the  Bulgarians  from  their 
rocky  eyrie  above,  to  follow  the  movement  of  anyone 
traversing  the  plateau.  One  had,  therefore,  to  dodge 
from  tree  to  tree.  From  time  to  time  the  whistle  of 
the  bullet  in  tmpleasant  proximity  to  one's  head 
showed  that  the  enemy  was  on  the  qui  vive. 

We  managed,  however,  to  gain  the  front  line 
trenches  without  mishap  and  could  get  a  full  view  of 
the  Bulgarian  positions.  In  front  of  the  Serbian 
trenches  and  to  the  right  there  was  about  fifty  yards 
of  fairly  level  ground.  Then  the  ground  rose  sharply 
till  it  reached  the  base  of  the  cliff,  the  famous  "Rock 
of  Blood,"  which  formed  the  highest  peak  of  the 
mountain.  So  near  were  the  Bulgarian  trenches  that 
one  had  to  inspect  them  by  means  of  a  periscope,  as  it 
would  have  been  as  much  as  one's  life  was  worth  to 
have  raised  one's  head  above  the  parapet.  The  near- 
est enemy  trench  was  only  about  fifty  yards  away, 


Operations  of  the  Second  Army    305 

while  the  "listening  posts"   were  only  half  that  dis- 
tance apart. 

An  amusing  incident  had  happened  in  one  of  those 
a  few  days  l^efore.  A  young  Bulgarian  soldier  had, 
it  appears,  received  a  letter  from  his  mother  in  which 
she  impressed  upon  him  the  necessity  of  not  losing 
his  life  in  the  war.  a  point  of  view  with  which  he 
was  in  complete  agreement.  She  further  told  him 
that  perhaps  the  best  way  to  do  this  would  be  to  give 
himself  up  to  the  Serbs,  as  she  had  heard  that  they 
treated  their  prisoners  with  humanity.  This  also  ap- 
pealed to  him  but  his  chief  difficulty  was  how  to  carry 
it  out.  A  few  days  later,  with  four  other  soldiers, 
he  was  sent  to  occupy  a  listening-post,  only  thirty 
•ards  removed  from  the  Serbian  lines. 

He  saw  that  his  chance  to  desert  had  come.  He, 
also  saw,  however,  that,  encumbered  with  heavy  boots 
and  great  coat,  it  would  be  difficult  for  him  to  make 
a  dash  for  the  Serbian  lines  without  being  shot  by  his 
comrades  before  he  reached  them.  Half  an  hour  later 
he  and  his  comrades  laid  their  rifles  against  the  para- 
pet in  order  to  have  their  hands  free  to  eat  their  even- 
ing meal.  This  was  his  chance.  He  swept  the  five 
rifles  together,  clasped  them  in  his  arms  and  in  an 
instant  was  "over  the  top"  and  rushing  toward  the 
Serbian  trench,  pursued  by  the  objurgations  of  his 
incensed  comrades.  As  soon  as  he  arrived  in  the  Ser- 
bian trench  a  patrol  was  sent  over  to  capture  the  now 
defenceless  quartet,  but  when  it  reached  the  listening- 
post  they  were  gone.  They  had  prudently  bolted  for 
the  trenches  behind.     The  reception  the  poor  devils 


3o6       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

got  from  the  German  officer  in  charge  in  the  rear  was 
probably  one  they  would  remember,  for  their  Teuton 
masters,  on  such  occasions,  were  apt  to  make  free  use 
of  their  riding  whips. 

In  order  to  -encourage  the  growing  tendency  of  the 
Bulgarian  soldiers  to  desert  we  had  brought  with  us 
from  Soubotzko  a  packet  of  picture  post  cards,  pre- 
pared by  the  photographic  section  of  the  General  Staff, 
representing  Bulgarian  prisoners  in  the  Serbian  lines, 
giving  evidence  de  visu  of  how  well  they  were  treated 
and  signed  on  the  back  by  the  men  represented  in  the 
pictures. 

These  were  to  be  sent  into  the  Bulgarian  lines  to 
convince  the  enemy  soldiers  that  the  tales  spread  in 
the  Bulgarian  ranks  by  the  German  officers  of  the 
cruelty  of  the  Serbs  were  a  myth.  I  asked  Colonel 
Tomsitch  how  these  cards  would  be  conveyed  to  them. 
"Oh,  that's  quite  simple,"  we  replied.  "We  just  call 
out  to  them,  'Don't  shoot,  we've  got  something  for 
you.'  Then  a  Serbian  soldier  goes  out  and  lays  them 
half  way  between  the  trenches  and  a  Bulgarian  comes 
and  fetches  them."  "But  will  the  Gennan  officer  with 
them  allow  them  to  read  them?"  I  asked.  "He's  never 
in  the  front  line  trench,"  the  colonel  replied.  "He 
occupies  a  dug-out  in  the  rear  and  only  comes  to  the 
front  line  in  case  of  attack." 

During  the  months  that  the  two  armies  had  been 
facing  each  other  on  the  Vetrenik  a  sort  of  modus 
znvendi  had  been  established.  A  "gentlemen's  agree- 
ment" had  been  come  to  not  to  attack  during  meal 
times.     As  soon  as  either  side  heard  the  rattle  of  the 


Operations  of  the  Second  Army    307 

tin  plates  showing  the  food  had  arrived  the  other  side 
called  out  "half  an  hour"  and  during  that  time  there 
was  a  lull  in  the  firing.  This  did  not  prevent  both 
sides  coming  at  each  other  with  the  bayonet  and  the 
butt  as  soon  as  the  period  of  grace  had  expired. 

Life  on  the  Vetrenik,  except  for  an  occasional  raid 
from  one  side  or  the  other,  was  deadly  monotonous. 
The  Serbs  were  not  in  sufiicient  force  to  risk  an  as- 
sault but  at  the  same  time  their  trenches  had  been 
made  so  formidable  that  the  Bulgarians  did  not  dare 
to  attempt  an  attack.  They  simply  sat  facing  one 
another  like  chiens  de  faience,  waiting  for  some  move- 
ment on  either  flank  which  would  force  the  hand  of 
the  enemy. 

It  had  originally  been  agreed  that  I  should  wait 
till  darkness  fell  before  attempting  the  descent  of  the 
mountain,  but  towards  the  afternoon  the  wait  became 
so  tedious  that  I  asked  Colonel  Tomsitch  if  there 
was  really  any  great  risk  in  going  down  in  daylight. 
"Of  course,  there's  always  a  chance  that  they'll  open 
fire  on  you,"  he  replied,  "but,  I  think  just  now  they're 
hard  up  for  ammunition.  They  have  not  fired  a  dozen 
rounds  in  the  last  three  days.  I  doul)t  if  under  the 
circumstances  they  would  w^aste  a  shell  on  a  single 
man.  We'll  try  them  out  to  see  how  they  stand." 
We  then  telephoned  to  a  mountain  battery  to  begin 
firing.  For  a  quarter  of  an  hour  we  sent  shell  and 
shrapnel  splintering  among  the  rocks  above  but  not  one 
shot  came  in  reply.  "That  settles  it,"  said  the  colo- 
nel, "they  must  be  hard  up  for  ammunition.  I  think 
you  can  risk  it." 


3o8       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

He  then  called  a  non-commissioned  officer  to  guide 
me  down  the  mountain  and  charged  him  strictly  to  see 
that  I  ran  as  few  risks  as  possible.  This  the  non-com. 
considered  would  be  achieved  by  descending  the 
mountain  side  with  vertiginous  speed.  He  seemed 
more  like  a  chamois  than  a  human  being.  But  en- 
cumbered by  heavy  riding-boots  and  spurs  I  could 
not  emulate  his  speed.  The  sun,  moreover,  was  blaz- 
ing in  a  cloudless  sky  and  I  soon  developed  a  tem- 
perature that  threatened  heat  apoplexy.  In  a  quar- 
ter of  an  hour  I  felt  I  must  either  rest  or  succumb 
to  the  heat  and  as  I  thought  a  Bulgarian  bullet  was 
preferable  to  sunstroke,  I  sat  down  in  the  lee  of  a 
rock  which  protected  me  from  one  line  of  Bulgarian 
positions  and  started  to  smoke  a  cigarette.  My  sol- 
dier-chamois stood  below  making  wild  signs  for  me 
to  make  haste  but  I  stuck  where  I  was  till  I  felt  suffi- 
ciently rested  to  resume  the  descent.  It  was  a  curious 
feeling  to  know  that  five  hundred  Bulgarian  eyes  on 
the  cliff  above,  less  than  a  thousand  yards  away, 
were  looking  down  on  me.  I  kept  my  eyes  glued  to 
the  sky  line,  ready  to  jump  if  I  saw  the  flash  of  a  gun. 
But  they  probably  thought  the  game  was  not  worth 
the  candle  or  shells  were  too  valuable,  for  nothing 
happened  and  I  finished  my  cigarette  in  peace. 

An  hour  and  a  half  later  I  was  back  in  Bachovo 
drinking  the  welcome  cup  of  the  tea  always  on  tap  in 
a  Serbian  post.  As  my  horse  had  been  resting  all 
day  I  put  him  to  a  sharp  trot  on  the  home  stretch 
and  an  hour  later  I  was  back  in  the  mess-room,  at 
Soubotzko. 


Operations  of  the  Second  Army     309 

The  impression  I  had  gained  by  my  visit  to  the 
front  of  the  Second  Serbian  army  was  that  unless 
it  was  reinforced  the  position  was  one  of  stalemate. 
But  I  little  thought  that,  thanks  to  the  indecision  of 
the  Allies,  this  state  of  things  on  this  front  would 
endure,  as  it  did,  for  nearly  two  long  years. 


CHAPTER  VIII 

THE    SECOND    PHASE    OF    THE    OPERATIONS THE    CAP- 
TURE  OF    MONASTIR 

THE  capture  of  Fiorina  and  the  pushing  forward 
of  the  Allied  lines  to  Kenali  and  the  seizure  of 
the  Kaymakchalan  and  the  descent  of  the  Third  Ser- 
bian Army  to  the  bend  of  the  Czema  Reka  or  Black 
River  marked  the  conclusion  of  the  first  phase  of  the 
offensive  of  the  Army  of  the  Orient. 

Unfortunately  the  force  under  the  command  of 
General  Sarrail  proved  unable  at  once  to  follow  up 
its  advantage  and  keep  on  forcing  the  Germano-Bul- 
garian  army  to  continue  its  retreat.  To  this  various 
factors  contributed.  It  is  difficult  at  the  present  mo- 
ment, before  all  the  facts  have  transpired  and  until 
we  have  access  to  documents  at  present  shut  up  in  the 
Archives  of  the  General  Staff  of  the  Army  of  the 
Orient  and  in  the  pigeon  holes  of  the  French  and  Brit- 
ish Foreign  Offices,  to  come  to  any  definite  conclusion 
and  apportion  the  blame. 

General  Sarrail  has  been  accused  of  want  of  energy 
and  resolution  in  commanding  his  troops  and  many 
have  declared  that  a  more  energetic  leader  would  have 
obtained  better  results.  But  many  things  militate 
against  this  view.     It  is  certain  that  up  to  1916  the 

310 


Second  Phase  of  the  Operations    311 

forces  at  his  command  at  no  time  exceeded  half  a 
milHon  men.  On  account  of  the  nature  of  the  coun- 
try, the  fighting  hue  requires  a  service  d'arriere  of 
most  formidable  proportions.  For  every  fighting  man 
on  the  front  there  had  to  be  a  man  in  the  rear  driv- 
ing a  truck,  leading  a  mule,  repairing  a  road,  con- 
structing a  railway,  driving  an  ambulance,  unloading 
a  ship  or  guarding  railways,  roads  and  bridges.  Then 
the  sick  on  his  hands,  thanks  to  the  malaria,  were  num- 
bered by  tens  of  thousands. 

Another  handicap  was  the  polyglot  conditions  of 
his  army,  with  its  five  autonomous  commands, 
French,  British,  Serbian,  Italian  and  Russian.  Each 
contingent  had  its  own  weapons  and  its  own  ammu- 
nition. The  shell  for  a  French  75  would  not  fit  a 
British  or  an  Italian  field  gun.  The  same  held  good 
of  small  arm  ammunition. 

Every  operation  had  to  be  carried  out  under  the 
standing  menace  of  Greece.  As  long  as  the  Kaiser's 
brother-in-law  occupied  the  throne  of  that  country 
there  was  no  absolute  security  for  the  flank  and  rear 
of  General  Sarrail's  army.  It  w^as  notorious  that  if 
it  had  suffered  a  serious  reverse  the  army  of  King 
Constantine  would  at  once  have  fallen  on  its  rear  and 
yet  months  went  by  and  the  Ministers  of  the  Allied 
Powers  in  the  Greek  capital  contented  themselves  with 
bombarding  King  Constantine  with  diplomatic  notes, 
more  or  less  comminatory,  but  never  followed  by  any 
energetic  action,  which  were  just  about  as  efficacious 
as  the  proverbial  "mustard  plaster  on  a  wooden  leg." 


312       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

The  diplomatic  action  in  Athens  in  191 6  was  a  melan- 
choly replica  of  that  at  Sofia  twelve  months  before. 

Then  it  was  notorious  that  the  British  Imperial 
Staff  regarded  the  whole  Macedonian  front  with  deep 
disfavour  and  gave  it  only  the  most  grudging  support. 
Such  reliefs  as  were  sent  out  barely  replaced  the  vic- 
tims to  malaria.  After  Lord  Kitchener's  visit  to  Gal- 
lipoli  and  Salonica  a  year  before  he  had  actually  pro- 
posed that  the  Allies  should,  purely  and  simply,  evac- 
uate Salonica  simultaneously  w4th  Gallipoli.  It  re- 
quired the  energetic  personal  intervention  of  Field 
Marshal  Joffre  to  prevent  this  suicidal  project  being 
carried  out.  But  though  on  his  urgent  representation, 
the  decision  to  evacuate  Salonica  was  rescinded,  the 
prejudice  against  that  front  still  prevailed  at  the  War 
Office. 

All  this  did  not  make  for  resolution  and  energy  in 
the  supreme  command  at  Salonica.  The  situation  was 
further  complicated  by  an  open  breach  between  the 
commander-in-chief  and  his  next  in  command,  Gen- 
eral Cordonnier,  head  of  the  French  contingent.  The 
exact  cause  of  the  breach  has  not  officially  transpired, 
but  the  version  commonly  current  in  Salonica  was  to 
the  effect  that  it  was  due  to  a  difference  of  opinion 
regarding  the  operations  against  Fiorina.  General 
Sarrail,  it  is  stated,  became  irritated  at  the  slowness 
of  the  operations  on  the  eastern  sector,  the  more  so 
as  Paris  and  London  were  daily  calling  for  energetic 
action  to  aid  Roumania's  entry  into  the  war. 

General  Sarrail,  accordingly,  went  in  person  to  the 
front  and  after  a   survey  of  the  positions,   ordered 


Second  Phase  of  the  Operations    313 

General  Cordonnier  to  attack.  The  latter,  it  is  said, 
refused,  declaring-  that  the  artillery  preparation  had 
not  been  sufficient  and  that  the  number  of  troops  at 
his  disposal  was  not  large  enough  to  justify  an  at- 
tack. General  Sarrail  criticized  his  subordinate's 
views  with  such  vivacity  that  General  Cordonnier  re- 
signed his  command  on  the  spot  and  a  few  days  later 
took  a  steamer  to  France  where  he  laid  his  views  be- 
fore the  Paris  ministry.  But  General  Sarrail,  having 
the  cable  at  his  disposal,  got  in  his  version  first.  The 
result  was  that  the  French  Government  was  in  posses- 
sion of  two  diametrically  opposing  statements  and  had 
no  means  of  coming  to  any  conclusion  as  to  who  was 
right.  It,  therefore,  gave  orders  to  General  Roques, 
Minister  of  War,  to  leave  for  Salonica  and  hold  an 
investigation  on  the  spot. 

No  hint  of  his  journey  was  allowed  to  transpire, 
with  the  result  that  he  arrived  at  the  Headquarters 
at  Salonica  absolutely  unexpectedly. 

On  November  ist,  when  returning  from  a  ride  to 
the  summit  of  the  Kaymakchalan,  I  was  surprised  to 
see  General  Sarrail's  private  railway  car  side-tracked 
at  Ostrovo  station.  A  French  soldier  working  at 
the  station  informed  me  that  General  Sarrail  and  the 
Minister  of  War  had  arrived  that  morning  to  confer 
with  General  Vasitch.  the  commander  of  the  Third 
Serbian  Army. 

When  I  arrived  at  mess  that  evening  the  presence 
of  General  Boyovitch,  the  Chief  of  the  Serbian  Head- 
quarters Staff,  and  a  number  of  staff  officers  showed 
that  important  decisions  were  being  weighed.     From 


314       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

what  I  could  hear  General  Roques  had,  on  the  whole, 
adopted  the  point  of  view  of  General  Sarrail  but  at 
the  same  time  warned  him  that  public  opinion  in 
France  and  England  expected  him  to  do  something 
to  justify  the  confidence  placed  in  him.  Unless  the 
half  million  men  under  his  orders  did  something  to 
justify  their  existence  their  commander-in-chief  was 
given  to  understand  that  he  might  expect  to  be  re- 
called to  France. 

It  was,  therefore,  a  question  of  at  once  resuming 
the  offensive,  with  the  capture  of  Monastir  as  the 
objective.  General  Sarrail  asked  the  Crown  Prince 
Alexander  to  undertake  this  with  his  army.  His 
Royal  Highness  entrusted  the  carrying  out  of  this 
offensive  to  Field-Marshal  Mishitch,  commanding  the 
First  Serbian  Army.  The  Field-Marshal  accepted 
the  mission  on  condition  that  his  forces  should  be  re- 
inforced by  a  French  division  and  by  the  division  of 
Russian  troops  and  that  the  whole  force  should  be  un- 
der his  direct  command.  This  request  caused  some 
little  heart-burning  in  French  military  circles  as  it 
was  the  first  time  that  French  troops  had  ever  been 
placed  under  the  command  of  a  foreign  general.  I 
must,  however,  hasten  to  state  that  this  feeling  was 
only  momentary  and  that  no  one  at  the  conclusion  of 
the  operations  paid  higher  tribute  to  Field-Marshal 
Mishitch  than  General  Jerome,  the  commander  of  the 
French  division  working  under  his  orders. 

The  troops  under  the  direct  command  of  Field- 
Marshal  Mishitch,  therefore,  consisted  of  the  First 
Serbian  Army  (made  up  of  the  Morava  and  Vardar 


Second  Phase  of  the  Operations    315 

divisions)  reinforced  by  a  brigade  from  the  Timok  Di- 
vision borrowed  from  the  Second  Serbian  Army ;  the 
French  division  commanded  by  General  Jerome  and 
the  Russian  division  under  the  command  of  General 
Leontieff.  The  operation  of  this  force  was,  of 
course,  supported  by  the  offensive  of  the  Third  Ser- 
bian Army,  under  General  Vasitch,  which  had  crossed 
the  Kaymakchalan  and  now  held  the  bend  of  the 
Czerna  river  on  the  plain  below. 

In  front  of  the  Serbian  and  French  troops  on  the 
Fiorina  front  extended  the  plain  of  Monastir,  about 
ten  miles  broad  and  twenty-five  miles  long.  To  the 
east  is  a  range  of  mountains  in  a  cleft  of  which  nes- 
tles the  town  of  Monastir.  To  the  west,  beyond  the 
Czerna  river,  lie  a  mass  of  mountains  dotted  with 
villages.  On  this  side  the  difficulty  of  an  offensive 
was  immense,  the  mountain  peaks  towering  one  above 
the  other  as  far  as  the  eye  could  reach. 

To  the  Russian  division  Field-Marshal  Mishitch  en- 
trusted the  operations  on  the  mountains  to  the  east. 
The  French  held  the  plain  and  the  line  of  trenches 
at  Kenali  which  directly  menaced  Monastir,  ten  miles 
distant.  For  himself  he  reserv^ed  the  most  difficult 
part  of  the  operations,  the  driving  of  the  enemy  from 
the  mountain  fortresses  to  the  west  of  the  plain. 

The  Serbs  had  no  illusions  as  to  the  enormous  diffi- 
culty of  their  task.  They  had  to  attack  an  enemy  of 
equal,  if  not  superior,  force  entrenched  in  a  series  of 
mountain  positions,  each  more  formidable  than  the 
other. 

In  the  first  days  of  October  after  their  victory  on 


3i6       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

the  Kaymakchalan  the  Serbs  of  the  Third  Army  were 
faced  by  the  triple  barrier  of  the  Czerna  Reka,  the 
rough  Morihovo  plateau  and  the  Selechka  Mountains. 

On  October  4th  that  army  reached  the  Czerna  Reka 
through  Petalino.  Two  days  later  they  forced  their 
way  past  the  Dobra  Polie  (where  the  Bulgarians  still 
held  in  check  the  troops  of  the  Second  Anny,  occupy- 
ing the  Pojar,  the  Katunatz  and  the  Kukurus)  and 
descended  to  Budimirca  and  Grunishte.  On  October 
9th  they  crossed  the  Czerna  Reka  at  the  important 
point  known  as  Skochivir,  where,  as  its  name  indi- 
cates, the  sluggish-flowing  river  breaks  into  rapids 
in  the  narrow  defile  into  which  it  is  forced  by  the  close 
proximity  of  the  Selechka  and  Starkov  Grob  Moun- 
tains. 

The  First  Army  under  the  direct  orders  of  Field- 
Marshal  Misitch  crossed  the  Czerna  Reka  between  the 
villages  of  Dobroveni  and  Brod  and  on  October  nth 
gained  a  footing  in  the  latter  village.  The  Serbs, 
however,  met  with  desperate  resistance.  This  was, 
however,  broken  on  October  17th  by  the  capture  of 
the  villages  of  Volyesedo  and  Brod.  The  enemy 
fell  back  precipitately  toward  the  north  pursued  by 
the  Serbian  cavalry.  The  capture  of  Gardilovo  threat- 
ened to  cut  off  the  Bulgarian  forces  facing  the  French 
and  Russians  on  the  Kenali  River-Sakulevo  line. 
They  begaij  to  fall  back  across  the  Czerna  Reka  by 
the  bridge  at  Bukri.  This  retreat  uncovered  the  way 
to  Monastir,  but  until  the  enemy  was  driven  from  the 
mountain  positions  to  the  west  it  was  not  possible  for 
the  French  to  take  full  advantage  of  this  success. 


Second  Phase  of  the  Operations    317 

With  the  object  of  driving  the  Germans  and  Bul- 
garians from  the  mountain  positions  the  Serbs  pushed 
north  from  Gardilovo  toward  Baldenci.  On  October 
19th  and  20th  they  captured  a  large  number  of  guns 
and  about  i,ooo  prisoners,  among  the  latter  a  German 
officer  and  43  men,  part  of  the  reinforcements  which 
had  arrived  from  East  Prussia  a  few  days  before. 
Encouraged  by  this  success  the  Serbs  pressed  forward 
with  renewed  vigor  toward  Baldenci  and  north  of 
Skochivir,  but  just  at  this  critical  moment  there  came 
a  break  in  the  weather.  Furious  rain  storms  impeded 
the  advance  of  the  Serbs  and  held  up  the  army  of 
Field  Marshal  Mishitch  at  the  very  moment  that  speed 
of  movement  was  most  essential. 

This  delay  allowed  the  enemy  to  bring  up  fresh 
German  troops  to  reinforce  his  beaten  army.  Encour- 
aged by  this  support  the  Bulgarians  on  October  22d 
tried  to  recover  the  ground  lost  three  days  before,  but 
all  their  attacks  were  repulsed  with  heavy  losses.  A 
vigorous  counter-attack  by  the  Serbs  advanced  their 
lines  700  metres  farther  north. 

Two  days  later  the  enemy  was  driven  from  the 
steep  sides  of  the  Starkov  Grob  and  the  Serbians 
seized  the  fortified  height  at  the  confluence  of  the 
Czerna  Reka  and  the  Stroshwitza.  For  the  next  few 
days  there  was  fierce  fighting  to  the  north  of  Brod. 
Gardilovo,  which  had  succumbed  to  a  Bulgarian  coun- 
ter attack,  was  recaptured  by  the  French  on  October 
28th.  The  open  weather  greatly  interfered  with  the 
operations  but  in  spite  of  rain  and  mud  the  Serbs 
pushed  forward  slowly  but  surely.     Their  objective 


3i8       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

was  the  bridge  at  Novak  which  serves  the  eastern  en- 
trance to  Monastir.  On  October  29th  the  Serbian  ar- 
tillery fire  demolished  the  wooden  bridge  over  the 
Czerna  River  at  Bukri.  The  Bulgarians  attacked  the 
Serbian  right  wing  south  of  the  villages  of  Polog  and 
Budinirca  on  November  4th  and  5th  but  the  attacks 
were  repulsed.  Renewed  on  November  7th  and  9th 
they  had  no  better  success. 

On  the  following  day  came  the  Serbian  reply,  de- 
livered with  crushing  force  by  the  Division  of  the 
Morava,  under  the  command  of  Colonel  Milovano- 
vitch.  This  division,  of  which  the  headquarters  were 
established  at  Vrbeni,  received  orders  to  storm  the 
heights  of  Mount  Chuke,  on  which  the  Bulgarians  had 
established  positions  of  great  strength.  On  October 
8th  I  rode  out  to  the  observation  post  established  a 
few  miles  from  Vrbeni,  from  which  a  magnificent  view 
of  Mount  Chuke  could  be  obtained.  This  mountain, 
which  constitutes  the  southernmost  point  of  the  Se- 
lechka  range,  rises  some  1,500  feet  above  the  valley. 
Half  way  up  to  the  first  summit,  which  is  about  1,000 
feet  high,  lay  the  village  of  Polog,  which  the  Bul- 
garians had  strongly  fortified.  Five  hundred  feet 
above  lay  the  second  rocky  crest,  the  summit  of  the 
formidable  natural  fortress.  It  was  clear  that  the 
Serbs  had  before  them  a  task  that  would  have  dis- 
mayed troops  of  less  dauntless  courage. 

The  assault  on  the  Chuke  positions  was  ordered  for 
the  following  morning.  In  view  of  this  the  artillery 
preparation  began  on  the  evening  of  Octol>er  8th  at 
seven   o'clock  and  was  continued   with   the   greatest 


Second  Phase  of  the  Operations    319 

violence  till  ten  o'clock  the  next  morning;  batteries  of 
all  calibre,  from  mountain  guns  to  heavy  howitzer 
batteries,  taking  part  in  it. 

It  was  about  nine  o'clock  in  the  morning  when  I 
arrived  on  the  summit  of  the  mountain  on  which  Colo- 
nel Milovanovitch  had  established  himself  to  direct 
the  attack  of  his  division.  On  the  windswept  pla- 
teau the  commander  of  the  Morava  division  had  placed 
his  campstool  between  two  boulders.  Behind  were 
grouped  a  dozen  ofBcers  of  his  staff  with  whom  were 
three  or  four  French  artillery  officers.  Under  cover 
of  the  rocks  and  boulders  the  telephones  were  installed 
which  placed  Colonel  Milovanovitch  in  touch  with  a 
score  of  batteries,  large  and  small,  distributed  in  the 
valley  below  and  on  the  lower  slopes  of  the  Chuke. 
From  our  coign  of  vantage  we  had  a  complete  view 
of  Mount  Chuke,  only  three  short  miles  away.  The 
battle  developed  itself  with  the  precision  of  a  cine- 
matograph show. 

When  I  arrived  at  nine  o'clock  every  battery  was 
pouring  shell  and  shrapnel  into  the  village  of  Polog. 
In  the  dry  water  courses,  behind  rocks,  boulders  and 
one  or  two  stone  w^alls  that  zigzagged  along  the  face 
of  the  mountain,  we  could  see  the  dark  masses  of  the 
Serbian  infantry  awaiting  the  order  to  attack.  Every 
instant  the  artillery  fire  grew  fiercer.  The  thunder 
of  the  guns  rolled  in  a  crescendo  and  diminuendo, 
according  to  the  curt  orders  transmitted  over  the  net- 
work of  telephone  lines.  We  could  see  the  side  of 
the  mountain  being  searched  by  shell  and  shrapnel 
from  base  to  summit.     The  Bulgarians  evidently  real- 


320       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

ized  that  the  infantry  attack  was  impending  and  tried 
to  send  reinforcements  to  Polog.  Three  times  their 
infantry  debouched  round  the  shoulder  of  the  moun- 
tain but  each  time  the  pitiless  rain  from  the  batteries 
drove  them  back  to  cover. 

Meanwhile  we  could  see  the  Serbian  infantry  leav- 
ing cover  and  swarming  up  in  a  succession  of  rushes 
toward  the  village.  Finally  they  were  within  strik- 
ing distance.  A  curt  order  from  Colonel  Milovano- 
vitch  and  the  artillery  fire  directed  on  the  village  sud- 
denly ceased,  as  the  Serbs  rushed  with  fixed  bayonets 
toward  Polog.  At  the  same  moment  shot  and  shell 
began  to  rain  on  the  ridge  above  to  establish  a  barrage 
and  prevent  the  Bulgarian  troops  massed  behind  it 
making  any  effort  to  come  to  the  aid  of  the  defend- 
ers of  the  village.  An  instant  later  the  long  lines  of 
Serbian  infantry  disappeared  into  the  village.  Then 
followed  a  few  minutes  of  anxious  waiting.  Sud- 
denly long  brown  columns  began  to  debouch  from 
Polog.  Turning  my  field  glasses  on  them  I  saw  they 
were  Bulgarian  prisoners.  The  Serbs  had  taken  the 
village  at  the  point  of  the  bayonet. 

But  little  respite  was  given  them,  they  had  to  brace 
themselves  for  the  second  effort,  the  capture  of  the 
first  ridge.  At  little  after  three  o'clock  we  could  see 
the  lines  of  Serbian  infantry  pouring  out  of  the  vil- 
lage and  swarming  up  the  slope  above.  Every  gun  the 
Bulgarians  could  bring  to  bear  was  trained  on  the 
advancing  troops.  But  the  Serbs  are  past-masters  of 
mountain  fighting  and  know  how  to  take  advantage 
of  every  scrap  of  cover.    We  could  see  them  crawling 


Second  Phase  of  the  Operations     321 

through  the  ravines,  working  their  way  along  the  dry 
water  courses,  in  and  out  of  the  boulders  and  trees, 
everywhere  that  nature  had  provided  barriers  against 
the  bullets  and  shrapnel  of  the  enemy. 

Steadily,  relentlessly  they  pushed  forward.  Then 
once  more  the  fire  of  the  Serbian  batteries  ceased,  a 
sign  that  the  last  assault  was  imminent.  A  few 
minutes  after  four  with  an  overwhelming  rush  the 
ridge  was  carried. 

But  there  still  remained  the  crest  of  the  mountain. 
Colonel  Milovanovitch  called  on  his  men  for  a  final 
effort.  They  responded  nobly  and  in  the  gathering 
dusk  massed  themselves  for  the  supreme  effort.  Foot 
by  foot  they  fought  their  way  toward  the  summit.  By 
this  time  darkness  had  fallen  and  we  could  only  fol- 
low their  progress  by  the  spurts  of  flame  from  their 
rifles  and  the  lines  of  bursting  shells.  About  six 
o'clock  a  telephone  message  announced  that  the  Bul- 
garians on  the  left  bank  of  the  crest  were  making  a 
last  desperate  effort  to  send  reinforcements  to  the 
threatened  positions.  The  French  heavy  batteries  in 
the  valley  below  were  at  once  ordered  to  smother  this 
shoulder  of  the  mountain  under  shell  fire.  It  was 
efficacious  and  a  c^uarter  of  an  hour  later  a  telephone 
message  announced  that  the  pressure  was  relieved.  At 
seven  o'clock  the  order  to  assault  was  given  and  the 
Serbians,  forgetting  the  fatigue  of  their  eight  hours 
of  desperate  battle,  rushed  forward  with  irresisti1)le 
elan.  As  one  battery  after  another  shut  down  its  fire 
an  uncanny  silence  settled  down  on  the  Chuke,  only 
broken  by  the  distant  rattle  of  rifles  and  machine  gun 


322       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia' 

fire.  There  was  an  anxious  wait  then  the  shrill  ring 
of  the  telephone  bell  broke  the  silence.  Colonel 
Yourousitch,  the  Chief  of  Staff,  leaned  over  the  re- 
ceiver. "The  Serbs  hold  the  summit,"  it  announced; 
"the  enemy  is  in  full  flight.  We  have  captured  seven 
howitzers,  one  field  gun,  nine  machine  guns  and  over 
600  prisoners  including  five  officers." 

The  battle  of  Chuke  was  won.  Colonel  Milovan- 
ovitch  rose  from  the  camp  stool  from  which  he  had 
not  moved  since  early  morning,  and  snapped  his  field- 
glasses  together.  An  instant  later  the  horses  of  the 
Staff  arrived.  The  Colonel  swung  himself  into  the 
saddle  and  with  a  curt  "Good  night,  gentlemen,''  to 
the  group  of  French  officers  galloped  off  into  the  dark- 
ness. 

Quarter  of  an  hour  later  nothing  was  left  on  the 
wind-swept  mountain  top  but  the  men  of  the  Field 
Telegraph  Corps  rolling  up  the  long  lines  of  telephone 
wires  and  loading  them  on  the  wagons  that  would 
carry  them  forward  to  spin  the  net  afresh  in  the  rear 
of  the  retreating  enemy. 

During  the  assault  on  Polog  and  Mount  Chuke 
the  French  and  Serbian  troops  on  the  plain  made  a 
demonstration  to  prevent  the  Bulgarians  sending  any 
help  to  the  troops  holding  the  mountain.  Strong 
patrols  were  sent  forward  to  simulate  an  attack.  The 
Bulgarians  sent  thousands  of  men  to  man  the  line  of 
trenches  facing  Kenali.  As  soon  as  they  saw  that  the 
trenches  were  manned  the  French  and  Serbian  artil- 
lery poured  a  tremendous  fire  into  them  with  disas- 
trous effect. 


Second  Phase  of  the  Operations    323 

Two  days  after  the  fall  of  Chuke  the  Bulgarians  by 
a  series  of  counter-attacks  tried  to  regain  the  lost 
ground  hut  were  driven  back  on  each  attempt,  leaving 
over  1000  prisoners  in  the  hands  of  the  Serbs.  On 
November  12th  Iven,  a  village  further  north,  fell  into 
Serbian  hands  and  the  whole  of  the  First  and  Third 
armies  were  across  the  Czerna  Reka.  On  November 
13th  the  village  of  Tepavci  was  taken  with  over  a 
thousand  prisoners  mostly  German.  Two  days  later 
Chegel  fell  and  the  victorious  Serbs  and  French 
pushed  forward  to  the  12 12  metre  hill,  the  key  posi- 
tion on  which  the  fate  of  Monastir  depended. 

This  the  Bulgarians  defended  with  the  courage  of 
despair.  The  French  brought  up  a  regiment  d'elite, 
the  2nd  Zouaves,  the  enfants  perdus,  who  swarmed  to 
the  attack  with  their  bugles  sounding  the  old  battle 
call  of  Algeria. 

'Tl  y  a  la  goutte  a  boire  la-haut 
II  y  a  la  goutte  a  boire." 

The  capture  of  the  1212  metre  hill  sealed  the  fate 
of  Monastir.  From  it  the  heavy  guns  could  not  only 
shell  the  city  but  also  the  only  line  of  retreat  across 
the  Czerna  Reka  at  Novak.  If  this  line  of  retreat 
had  been  closed  the  whole  Germano-Bulgarian  Army 
would  have  been  driven  to  disaster  in  the  marshes 
which  fill  the  northern  end  of  the  plain  of  Monastir. 
The  German  Stafif  saw  that  there  was  not  a  moment 
to  lose.  On  November  i8th  the  Germano-Bulgarian 
army  was  pouring  through   Novak   in   rapid   retreat 


324       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

leaving  only  a  strong  rearguard  to  hold  back  the 
advance  of  the  French  troops  lining  the  trenches  at 
Kenali.  At  midday  on  November  19th,  the  fourth 
anniversary  of  the  capture  of  the  city  from  the  Turks 
in  1912,  the  victorious  Allies  entered  Monastir.  The 
Serbs  did  not  want  the  French  to  alone  enjoy  this 
triumph  so  the  4th  Serbian  Regiment  of  Cavalry 
swam  their  horses  across  the  Czerna  Reka  and  gal- 
loped for  the  town,  the  dripping  troopers  entering  it 
from  the  north  side  at  the  same  moment  that  the 
French  regiments,  with  bands  playing  and  colors 
flying,  marched  in  from  the  south. 

Thus  closed  as  brilliant  a  series  of  operations  as 
was  fought  on  any  front  in  the  World-war.  The  in- 
domitable Serbs,  the  army  of  the  "Nation  that  will 
never  die,"  were  once  more  in  possession  of  the  second 
largest  town  in  King  Peter's  Kingdom. 

But  unfortunately  with  this  effort  the  Army  of  the 
Orient  had  shot  its  bolt.  It  had  no  reserves  to  follow 
up  the  fleeing  enemy  and  turn  their  retreat  into  a  rout. 
King  Peter's  gallant  army  had  fought  itself  once  more 
to  a  standstill.  The  men  of  the  First  and  Third 
armies  had,  by  eight  weeks  ceaseless  campaigning, 
reached  the  limit  of  human  effort. 

As  a  consequence  the  enemy  returned  practically 
unmolested  in  the  direction  of  Prilep,  where  it  again 
proceeded  to  entrench  itself,  and  the  whole  weary 
game  of  trench  warfare  began  afresh. 

The  Second  Army  on  the  Pojar-Vetrenik  line 
facing  the  Bulgarians  on  the  Dobra  Polie  were  not 
in  sufficient  force  to  take  the  offensive  which  would 


Second  Phase  of  the  Operations     325 

have  cost  more  lives  than  the  depleted  Shumadia  and 
Timok  divisions  could  spare.  The  fact  that  the  Bul- 
garians held  the  rocky,  precipitous  crest  of  Mount 
Vetrenik  on  the  west  of  the  Dobra  Polie  and  the  sum- 
mit of  the  steep  sugar-loaf -shaped  Mount  Sokol  on 
the  east  allowed  the  Bulgarian  artillery  on  these  posi- 
tions to  enfilade  any  force  advancing  across  the  valley 
from  the  Pojar  to  attack  the  positions  on  the  Dobra 
Polie.  Another  division  would  have  rendered  a  suc- 
cessful attack  possible  but  this  was  not  at  the  dis- 
posal of  Field  Marshal  Stepanovitch.  The  result  was 
that  the  war  resolved  itself  into  a  position  of  stale- 
mate which  lasted  nearly  two  years. 


CHAPTER  IX 

THE  GENERAL  OFFENSIVE  OF  THE  ARMY  OF  THE  ORIENT 

THE  capture  of  Monastir,  important  though  it 
was  politically,  had  little  tactical  and  less 
strategic  significance.  The  failure  of  the  Army  of  the 
Orient  to  pursue  its  advantage,  due  to  the  lack  of 
troops  to  follow  the  fleeing  Bulgarians  and  transform 
their  retreat  into  a  rout,  neutralized,  to  a  great  extent, 
the  momentary  success  achieved.  The  enemy  was 
given  time  to  occupy  and  entrench  strong  mountain 
positions,  barring  the  advance  of  the  Serbs  to  Prilep 
and  the  Babuna  Pass.  It  was  even  in  the  power  of  the 
enemy  to  bombard  the  city  of  Monastir  with  long 
range  artillery,  which  they  did  for  weeks,  more  than 
half  of  the  city  being  laid  in  ruins. 

The  positions  of  the  Army  of  the  Orient  toward  the 
end  of  January,  1917,  were  as  follows:  The  Morava 
and  Vardar  Divisions  held  a  line  running  from  the 
Kaymakchalan  through  Petalino,  Budimirca,  Gru- 
nishte  and  Iven  to  beyond  the  1378  metre  hill.  This 
line  faced  the  Bulgarian  trenches  barring  the  advance 
on  Prilep  and  the  Babuna  Pass. 

From  the  base  of  the  Kaymakchalan  the  line  ran 
almost   at   right   angles,    along  the   summits   of   the 

326 


The  General  Offensive  327 

Pojar,  Katunatz,  Kukurus  and  Vetrenik  mountains  to 
the  Vardar  Valley  which  was  held  by  the  French 
contingent. 

The  French  were  linked  up  with  the  British  forces 
stretching  across  the  Valley  of  the  Struma.  The  only 
result  of  the  brilliant  offensive  of  Field  Marshal 
Mishitch  had,  therefore,  been  to  free  the  city  and 
plain  of  Monastir  of  the  enemy  and  to  drive  them 
into  mountain  positions  about  twenty-five  miles  to  the 
west. 

The  First  Serbian  army  was  so  exhausted  by  the 
effort  it  had  made  that  General  Sarrail  ordered  it  to 
be  brought  to  the  rear  and  given  some  weeks  of  well 
deserved  rest.  In  consequence  the  Morava  and  Var- 
dar Divisions  were,  toward  the  end  of  January, 
19 1 7,  brought  back  to  the  neighbourhood  of  Fiorina 
and  their  places  in  the  front  line  taken  by  French 
troops. 

After  that  things  settled  down  to  their  fonner 
condition  of  stalemate  where  the  operations  were  con- 
fined to  long  range  artillery  fire  with  an  occasional 
trench  raid.  It  was  at  this  moment  that  I  left  Salonica 
to  visit  Rome,  Paris  and  London.  It  was  then  that  I 
realized  how  divided  were  the  counsels  of  the  Allies 
in  regard  to  the  Salonica  front,  the  French  favouring 
an  energetic  offensive  and  the  British  General  Staff 
opposing  it. 

There  was,  however,  in  the  following  months,  some 
slight  improvement  in  the  political  situation.  After 
the  conference  held  at  Rome  in  December,  191 6,  the 


328       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

necessity  for  closer  co-operation  of  the  Allies  became 
more  clearly  apparent  and  some  time  later  the 
Supreme  Council  at  Versailles,  composed  of  the 
Premiers  of  France,  Great  Britain,  Italy  and  a  rep- 
resentative of  Russia,  came  into  being.  Its  constitution 
brought  the  dispute  between  Mr.  Lloyd  George  and 
the  Imperial  General  Staff  to  a  head,  with  the  result 
that  General  Sir  William  Robertson  resigned  and  was 
replaced  by  General  (now  Field  Marshal)  Sir  Henry 
Wilson,  a  soldier  who  possessed  the  confidence  of  the 
Premier, 

A  more  energetic  political  attitude  was  adopted  in 
regard  to  the  Near  East  and  drastic  measures  were 
taken  to  curb  the  pro-German  intrigues  oi  King  Con- 
stantine,  and  when  that  monarch  proved  recalcitrant, 
he  was  deposed  on  June  12th  and  replaced  by  his 
second  son,  Prince  Alexander.  M.  Venizelos  was  ap- 
pointed Prime  Minister,  Greece  declared  war  on  the 
Central  Powers  and  their  Alhes  and  proceeded  to 
mobilize  her  armies. 

In  the  month  of  October  General  Sarrail  was  re- 
placed at  the  head  of  the  Army  of  the  Orient  by  Gen- 
eral Guillaumat,  a  soldier  of  great  energy  and  decision 
of  character,  who  had  distinguished  himself  on  the 
Western  front.  He  at  once  began  a  thorough  reor- 
ganization of  the  Salonica  front.  Large  reinforce- 
ments were  sent  from  France  and  England  and  the 
newly  mobilized  Greek  army  was  added  to  the  forces 
in  Macedonia. 

On  March  18,  19 18,  the  Allies  at  last  succeeded  in 


The  General  Offensive  329 

realizing  unity  of  action  by  the  appointment  of  Field 
Marshal  Foch  to  the  Supreme  command  of  all  the 
Allied  forces.  One  of  his  first  actions  was  to  order 
the  Army  of  the  Orient  to  prepare  for  a  j^eneral 
offensive.  General  Franchet  d'Esperey,  who  com- 
manded the  Fifth  French  army  group  on  the  Western 
front,  was  sent  to  Salonica  to  carry  out  the  operations. 
He  arrived  on  that  front  toward  the  end  of  June, 
1918.  After  a  rapid  survey  of  the  positions  he  ar- 
rived at  the  conviction  that  the  departure  of  the 
greater  part  of  the  German  troops,  together  with  the 
reinforcement  of  the  Army  of  the  Orient,  to  which 
were  added  the  Greek  divisions  (nine  in  all),  had 
created  a  situation  on  the  Macedonian  front  which 
would  allow  the  Allied  troops  to  undertake  an 
offensive  on  a  large  scale  with,  this  time,  every  pros- 
pect of  a  definite  result. 

The  favourable  turn  of  events  on  the  Western  front, 
and  the  weakening  of  the  morale  of  the  Bulgarian 
troops,  due  to  the  extreme  lassitude  caused  by  the 
prolongation  of  the  war,  which  was  clear  from  infor- 
mation reaching  the  Allied  lines,  greatly  increased  the 
chance  of  a   successful  offensive. 

The  idea  of  a  general  offensive  was  conceived  for 
the  first  time  toward  the  beginning  of  July  (about  the 
5th  of  the  month)  that  is  to  say,  shortly  after  the 
arrival  in  Salonica  of  General  Franchet  d'Esperey  and 
the  entry  of  Field-Marshal  Mishitch  on  his  new  func- 
tions as  the  Chief  of  the  General  Staff  of  the  Serbian 
Army. 


330       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

The  first  instructions  were  given  on  July  27th  and 
the  definite  decision  to  attack  was  taken  August  9, 
19 1 8,  that  is  to  say,  nearly  two  years  after  the  cap- 
ture of  Monastir  in  November,  19 16. 

The  plan  of  General  Franchet  d'Esperey  was,  by 
operations  undertaken  on  the  Serbian  front,  in  the 
mountainous  region  lying  between  the  Souchitza  and 
the  Lechwitza  rivers,  to  bring  about  a  rupture  of  the 
enemy's  lines  on  a  front  of  30  kilometres  (20  miles) 
and  by  rapidly  following  up  this  success  to  widen  the 
breach  and  by  a  vigorous  forward  push  to  reach  the 
Demir-Kapu-Kavadartze  line.  By  these  operations 
two  results  would  be  achieved: 

(a)  The  separation  of  the  Bulgarian  forces  in  the 
Valley  of  the  Vardar  from  those  holding  the  Monastir 
region. 

(b)  The  cutting  of  the  enemy's  principal  lines  of 
communication,  those  which  ran  along  the  valley  of 
the  Vardar  and  those  which  linked  up  Gradsko  with 
Prilep. 

Every  precaution  was  taken  to  keep  the  plans  of 
the  Allies  absolutely  secret  and  to  assure  the  rapidity 
and  vigour  of  their  execution. 

The  Allied  commander-in-chief  counted,  as  the 
natural  consequence  of  this  manoeuvre,  that  the 
enemy  would  be  forced  to  abandon  trench  warfare 
and  adopt  a  war  of  movement.  The  result  showed 
that  these  expectations  were  justified  and  even 
exceeded. 

The  forces  on  both  sides  were : 


The  General  Offensive  331 

( 1 )  On  the  whole  Macedonian  front : 

Allied  Enemy 
Army 

Battalions    289  297 

Fighting  effective 177,562  181,160 

Machine  guns , .      2,682  2,539 

Machine  rifles 6,424  

Guns    (including  trench  mortars, 

58  and   240) 2,069  1.850 

Guns,  yj  millimetres 289  

Squadrons  of  cavalry 47/^  26 

Aeroplanes    (about) 200   (about)   80 

(2)  On  the  Serbian  front: 

Allied  Enemy 
Army 

Battalions    ,.  .  .  .           75  26 

Fighting   effective 36,500  1 1,600 

Machine  guns , 756  245 

Machine  rifles 2,610  

Guns      (including     trench     mor- 
tars)              580  146 

Guns  of  };j  millimetres 74  

Squadrons  of  cavalry 18  3 

Aeroplanes    81  24 

In  consequence,   the  Allies,   on  the  Serbian    front, 
w^ere  three  times  stronger  than  the  enemy,  both   in 

infantry  and  artillery.    The  reinforcements  attached 

to  the  Serbian  army  for  these  operations  are  included 
in  the  effectives  given  above. 


332       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

These  reinforcements  were  made  up  as  follows: 

(a)  Two  divisions  of  French  infantry  (the  122nd 
division  of  Infantry  and  the  17th  division  of  Colonial 
Infantry). 

(b)  Thirteen  batteries  of  light  artillery. 

(c)  Aeroplanes,  Stokes  guns,  fire-throwing  appa- 
ratus, labor  detachments,  etc. 

The  front  was  further  strengthened  by  being  di- 
minished almost  by  half  by  bringing  in  the  two 
divisions  on  the  extreme  flanks,  the  Timok  division  on 
the  east  and  the  Morava  division,  with  the  detach- 
ment from  Prilep,  on  the  west.  The  front  of  opera- 
tion of  the  Serbian  armies  was  thus  reduced  from  60 
to  about  30  kilometres  (40  to  20  miles). 

As  soon  as  the  decision  to  take  the  offensive  was 
adopted  the  following  preparatory  operations  were 
undertaken : 

(a)  The  construction  of  new  roads  and  the  repair 
of  those  already  existing.  About  30  kilometres  of  new 
roads  and  numerous  footpaths  were  constructed  in 
very  mountainous  regions  and  on  very  difficult 
ground. 

(b)  The  construction  of  a  Decauville  narrow- 
guage  railway  linking  Dragomantzi  and  Bizovo  (15 
kilometres)  and  the  augmentation  of  the  daily  carry- 
ing capacity  of  the  existing  Vertekop-Soubotzko  nar- 
row-gauge line  from  300  to  700  tons. 

(c)  The  transport  and  placing  of  the  artillery,  the 
construction  of  redoubts  and  artillery  ammunition 
dumps. 

(d)  The  transport  of  munitions  to  the  gun  posi- 


The  General  Offensive  333 

tions  (7  days'  supply  for  the  old  and  4  days'  supply 
for  the  new  batteries). 

(e)  The  establishing  of  new  telephone  and  tele- 
graph lines. 

(f)  The  reinforcement  of  the  aviation  and  the 
establishment  of  an  aerodrome  at  Yenidje-Vardar,  etc. 

The  relieving  of  the  flanking  divisions  was  carried 
out,  for  the  Timok  Division  on  August  28th,  for  the 
Morava  Division  on  August  27th  and  for  the  Prilep 
detachment  on  August  15th. 

The  arrival  of  the  I22d  French  Infantry  Division 
on  this  sector  was  terminated  on  September  8th  and 
that  of  the  17th  Division  of  Colonial  Infantry  on 
September  9th. 

The  entire  preparations  were  thus  terminated  about 
the  middle  of  September,   19 18. 

At  the  moment  of  beginning  the  attack  the  Serbian 
forces  were  distributed  as  follows : 

Second  Serbian  Army. 

Souchitza-Soko  front  (17  kilometres) 

Division     of     the     Shumadia :  —  Sou- 
chitza-Kamen,    6^    kilometres,    85 
guns 
17th     division     of     Colonial     infantry: 
First  line      -i  Kamen-Testerast  Kamen  3.8  kilo- 

metres; 112  guns 
I22d  division  of  French  infantry :    Tes- 
terast  Kamen-Sokol,  5^^  kilometres, 
136  guns 


334       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 


Second  line  - 


First  line 


Division  of  the  Timok  behind  the  17th 
Division  of  French  Colonial  infantry 

Jugoslav  division  behind  the  1226.  di- 
vision of  French  infantry 

Corps  artillery,  18  guns 

First  Serbian  Army 

Division  of  the  Drina : — Soko-Gradech- 

mitza   Pass,    11 5^    kilometres;    100 

guns 
Division  of  the  Danube: — Gradechnitza 

Pass — Lechnitza,    5   kilometres;   81 

guns 

C  Division    of    the    Morava,    behind    the 
Second  line  -I        centre  of  the  line 

t  Corps  artillery,  14  guns 

Artillery  under  the  direct  orders  of  the  High  Com- 
mand at  Floka,  12  guns. 

The  idea  of  the  manoeuvre  was  the  follov^^ing: — 
To  bring  about  a  breach  in  the  part  of  the  enemy  line 
between  the  Kamen  and  the  Soko,  facing  the  Second 
Serbian  Army  (95^  kilometres)  and  to  extend  it  at 
once  right  and  left  along  the  whole  Serbian  front, 
to  undertake  the  pursuit  of  the  enemy  with  the  two 
second  line  Serbian  divisions  (the  Jugoslav  and  Timok 
divisions)  in  the  direction  of  Demir-Kapu  and  Kava- 
dartzi,  by  pushing  forward  with  the  greatest  energy 
and  to  execute  a  similar  movement  in   front  of  the 


The  General  Offensive  335 

First  Serbian  Army  in  the  direction  of  the  Czema 
Reka. 

The  attack  on  the  Serbian  front  was  to  be  followed 
by  an  attack  near  Doiran  and  another  near  Monastir 
so  as  to  widen  the  breach  on  both  sides. 

The  artillery  preparation  for  the  general  offensive 
began  on  September  14th.  In  principle,  this  was  to 
have  been  as  short  as  possible  and  should  only  have 
lasted  a  few  hours.  But  at  the  request  of  certain  di- 
visional commanders  it  was  decided  to  prolong  it  for 
24  hours. 

It  began  at  8  o'clock  in  the  morning.  The  weather 
was  fine  but  not  very  clear.  At  the  hour  fixed  all  the 
guns  opened  fire  on  the  enemy's  two  fortified  lines. 
Reports  received  at  midday  from  the  First  Army 
stated  that  patrols  sent  out  by  the  Shumadia  division 
were  received  at  certain  points  by  rifle  fire  and  gre- 
nades. At  the  extreme  left  breaches  were  opened  at 
several  points.  The  first  line  trenches  were  for  the 
most  part  destroyed.  The  enemy  shelled  a  number  of 
points  in  the  rear  of  the  division  of  the  Shumadia. 

The  17th  Division  of  Colonial  Infantry  reported  a 
number  of  lucky  hits  with  its  trench  mortars,  but  the 
dust  raised  by  the  bombardment  was  so  great  that  it 
was  difficult  to  observe  the  results.  The  enemy  artil- 
lery responded  very  weakly. 

In  front  of  the  I22d  Division  of  French  Infantry 
the  artillery  preparation  was  carried  out  according  to 
plan.    The  return  fire  of  the  enemy  was  intermittent. 

The  heavy  artillery  of  the  corps  shelled  all  the 
enemy  units  signalled  by  aeroplanes  and  such  posi- 


33^       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

tions  as  it  had  been  able  to  locate  from  its  observation 
posts. 

The  artillery  preparation  of  the  First  Army  also 
began  at  8  o'clock.  Patrols  were  sent  out  to  report  the 
progress  of  the  destruction  effected  by  the  guns.  The 
enemy  artillery  responded  in  very  feeble  fashion.  The 
Serbian  listening  posts  learnt  that  the  bombardment 
had  caused  heavy  losses  to  the  enemy,  torn  up  his 
telephone  lines  and  destroyed  the  trenches.  Observa- 
tions were,  however,  very  difficult  on  account  of  the 
heavy  dust  caused  by  the  bombardment. 

The  action  of  the  artillery  continued  all  afternoon 
on  the  front  of  the  two  Serbian  armies.  On  the  front 
occupied  by  the  division  of  the  Shumadia  the  effect 
of  the  fire  was  generally  speaking  good.  In  front  of 
the  17th  French  Colonial  Division  many  trenches 
were  torn  up  and  the  woods  behind  them  shattered. 
From  three  o'clock  onward  the  enemy  returned  the 
fire  with  more  vigour.  In  front  of  the  1226.  French 
division  all  the  destruction  foreseen  was  realized.  The 
corps  artillery  held  the  enemy  artillery  in  check  and 
proceeded  to  register  its  batteries  in  the  direction  of 
Koziak.  The  aviation  reported  no  movement  in  prox- 
imity to  the  front,  but  about  half  past  four  an  aero- 
plane signalled  that  five  convoys  of  fifty  wagons  each 
were  moving  in  the  direction  of  Kosisk.  A  patrol  was 
sent  to  open  fire  on  them. 

In  general  the  destructive  fire  on  the  front  of  the 
Second  Army  was  very  well  executed  and  the  artil- 
lery, from  this  point  of  view,  may  be  considered  to 
have  accomplished   its  task.    The  rear   of   the    17th 


The  General  Offensive  337 

Colonial  Division  suffered  from  the  fire  of  the  enemy 
artillery.    The  division  suffered  some  losses. 

In  the  course  of  the  night  the  artillery  maintained 
its  curtain  fire  and  kept  the  ruined  trenches  of  the 
enemy  continually  under  shell  fire. 

The  artillery  of  the  First  x^rmy,  in  the  course  of 
the  afternoon,  undertook  certani  concentrations  of 
fire  and  a  number  of  barrages  on  the  enemy  lines 
facing  the  Division  of  the  Drina  and  a  strong  prepar- 
atory bombardment  of  the  Sokol.  But  all  the  same, 
Serbian  patrols  sent  out  were  received  with  rifle  fire. 
The  return  fire  of  the  enemy  artillery  gradually  weak- 
ened and  he  contented  himself  with  intensifying  his 
barrage  on  the  Rovovska  Kossa. 

During  the  night  Serbian  patrols  raided  the  enemy 
trenches,  penetrating  them  at  certain  points.  At  some 
points  they  even  pushed  forward  to  the  supporting 
lines.  It  was  found  that  the  whole  line  of  enemy 
trenches  facing  the  Division  of  the  Drina  had  been 
practically  destroyed. 

The  same  held  good  of  the  front  facing  the  Division 
of  the  Danube.  Here,  however,  the  patrols  were 
checked  by  a  powerful  barrage,  supported  by  machine 
guns,  rifle  fire  and  hand  grenades. 

During  the  night  the  infantry  took  up  its  positions 
of  attack.  The  second  line  troops  were  moved  up  to 
within  a  thousand  yards  of  the  first  line,  the  Division 
of  the  Timok  behind  the  17th  French  Colonial  Di- 
vision and  the  Jugoslav  division  behind  the  I22d 
French  division. 

At  half  past  five  on  the  morning  of  September  15th 


338       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

the  three  first  hne  divisions  of  the  Second  Army 
attacked  on  the  whole  front.  With  such  vigour  was  the 
assault  given  that  the  Division  of  the  Shumadia  ad- 
vanced beyond  the  Slonovo  Uvo  to  the  north  and 
reached  the  eastern  summit  of  the  Vetrenik.  On  the 
1570  metre  hill  it  captured  300  prisoners,  2  howitzers 
and  2  field  guns.  On  the  Vetrenik  it  took  one  officer, 
20  soldiers,  a  machine  gun  and  a  small  minnenwerfer. 
The  enemy  fled  by  small  groups  from  the  Gola  Rudina 
to  the  Poiate. 

The  loth  Regiment  of  the  17th  French  Colonial 
Division  reached  the  summit  of  the  Kravitza.  The 
prisoners  taken  numbered  21  officers,  125  noncom- 
missioned officers  and  791  men.  A  great  mass  of 
material  was  also  captured. 

The  I22d  French  Division  captured  the  Dobra  Polie 
but  was  checked  in  its  advance  toward  the  north.  A 
major  and  a  captain  were  among  the  prisoners. 

The  reserve  divisions  then  moved  forward  to  the 
foot  of  the  captured  positions.  As  the  result  of  a 
counter  attack  on  the  17th  Colonial  Division  its 
reserves  were  used  up  but  these  were  at  once  reconsti- 
tuted by  detachments  taken  from  the  Serbian  unities 
in  the  immediate  vicinity  so  that  the  positions  con- 
quered were  maintained. 

In  the  afternoon  the  division  of  the  Shumadia,  by 
a  brilliant  attack,  captured  the  whole  of  the  western 
summit  of  the  Vetrenik  and  pushed  forward  its  ad- 
vance guard  toward  the  north,  attacking  the  Gola 
Rudini.  It  captured  a  howitzer  batter)^,  which  it  im- 
mediately turned  against  the  enemy  holding  Borova 


The  General  Offensive  339 

Chuke,  and  sent  forward  detachments  to  capture  that 
position.  The  manoeuvre  was  intended  to  facilitate 
the  action  of  the  17th  Colonial  Division  which  had 
been  stopped  in  its  forward  movement  by  the  fierce 
resistance  of  the  enemy. 

At  four  o'clock  the  division  carried  the  Borova 
Chuke  and  sent  some  infantry  detachments  towards 
the  1606  metres  hill,  the  Olla  Chuke  and  Poroy.  At 
this  moment  the  Gola  Rudina  was  also  captured  and 
by  five  o'clock  the  left  flank  of  the  division  reached 
the  Souchitza  River,  while  a  detachment  pushed  on 
toward  Chlem.  Later  the  Shumadia  Division  cap- 
tured the  Kravitchki  Kamen.  In  doing  this  the 
Shumadia  Division  had  not  only  accomplished  the 
mission  confided  to  it  but  had  done  much  more  as, 
by  its  capture  of  the  Borova  Chuke  and  the  Kravitchka 
Kamen,  it  contributed  to  the  final  capture  of  all  the 
enemy's  front  line  positions.  It  played  a  decisive  role 
in  the  day's  fighting  though,  according  to  the  original 
plan,  it  should  only  have  executed  an  attack  of  sec- 
ondary importance. 

The  17th  Division  of  French  Colonial  Infantry 
about  one  o'clock  in  the  afternoon  captured  the  Golak- 
Kravitchki  Kamen  line  of  trenches.  Its  left  wing 
advanced  toward  the  Kravitchki  Kamen-Olla  Chuke 
and  Borova  line.  The  enemy,  reinforced  by  the  entire 
53d  regiment  of  Bulgarian  infantry,  launched  three 
counter-attacks  against  this  division.  They  were  so 
violent  that  the  division  had  to  fall  back  behind  its 
advanced  lines  and,  as  stated  above,  bring  up  all  its 
reserves.    The  Serbian  General  Headquarters  at  once 


340       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

sent  orders  to  the  Field  Marshal  commanding  the 
Second  Army  to  send  his  second  line  division  to  the 
support  of  the  17th  Colonial  Division  and  to  aid  it  in 
the  accomplishment  of  its  mission.  This  was  done 
at  once,  the  enemy  was  repulsed  and  the  division  at- 
tained its  objective,  carrying  the  summit  of  the  Sokol 
by  a  night  attack. 

In  spite  of  the  exhausting  effort  made  l>y  the 
Second  Army  in  this  day's  fierce  fighting  it  was  called 
on  to  make  yet  further  sacrifices.  The  General  Head- 
quarters telegraphed  to  the  Field  Marshal  command- 
ing it  pointing  out  the  importance  of  its  continuing  its 
advance  during  the  night  to  follow  up  the  retreating 
enemy  and  keep  contact  with  him. 

The  First  Serbian  Army,  after  an  artillery  prepara- 
tion of  the  same  intensity  and  the  same  duration  as 
that  of  the  Second  Army,  began  its  attack  at  5  130 
a.  m.,  by  an  attack  on  the  Sokol.  This  was  carried 
out  by  the  Division  of  the  Drina.  By  a  quarter  past 
six  the  right  wing  had  seized  the  right  hand  peak 
while  certain  groups  managed  to  secure  a  footing  on 
the  left  hand  peak  and  in  the  depression  to  the  west. 
But  this  company  and  the  left  of  the  1226.  French 
Infantry  Division  had  to  fall  back  before  the  fire  of 
the  enemy  artillery.  On  the  whole  the  right  wing  of 
this  division  did  not  achieve  any  notable  success  and 
the  commander  of  the  column  received  orders  to  con- 
tinue his  action  in  liaison  with  the  left  of  the  division. 

Patrols  from  the  Division  of  the  Danube  had  dis- 
covered that  the  artillery  preparation  had  had  as  its 
result  a  destruction  of  the  enemv's  defences  sufficient 


The  General  Offensive  341 

to  justify  a  general  attack.  The  fire  of  the  artillery 
was  continued  but  chiefly  directed  on  the  rear  of  the 
enemy.  On  some  points  the  enemy  artillery  responded 
by  a  vigorous  fire.  Orders  were  given  to  continue  the 
artillery  preparation  till  three  o'clock  so  as  to  give 
the  Second  Army  time  to  carry  out  the  task  as- 
signed it. 

At  that  hour  the  Field  Marshal  commanding  the 
First  Army  gave  orders  for  an  attack  all  along  the 
line.  As  a  first  result  of  this,  two  companies  suc- 
ceeded in  getting  a  footing  in  the  Grba  and  on  the 
isolated  mamelon  alongside  it,  but  as  the  1338  metre 
crest  of  the  Rovovoka  Kossa  was  still  in  the  hands 
of  the  enemy,  and  also  on  account  of  the  difficulties 
of  the  terrain  and  the  intensity  of  the  enemy's  fire 
these  companies  had  to  regain  their  trenches. 

At  five  o'clock  in  the  afternoon  the  infantry  of  the 
Division  of  the  Drina  advanced  toward  the  enemy 
positions  on  the  Sokol-Gradechnitza  part  of  the  front, 
but  was  brought  to  a  halt  by  an  excessively  violent 
machine  gun  fire  coming  from  the  Veza  and  the  sum- 
mit of  the  Sokol.  On  the  part  of  the  front  between 
the  Pass  of  the  Gradechnitza  and  the  Rovovoka  Kossa, 
the  first  wave  of  the  Serbian  attack  reached  the 
enemy  trenches. 

The  divisions  received  orders  to  continue  the  attack 
during  the  night  and  to  capture  the  enemy's  first  line. 
The  manoeuvre  succeeded  completely  and  the  right 
wing  of  the  right  division  captured  the  Sokol  at  the 
same  moment  as  the  I22d  French  division.  This  suc- 
cess was  extended  to  the  1338  metre  hill  so  that  by 


342       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

5  130  a.  m.,  the  whole  of  the  enemy's  first  line  was  in 
the  hands  of  the  First  Army  and  the  advance  of  the 
infantry  continued  in  the  direction  of  the  Lechnitchka 
Kossa. 

All  the  enemy's  first  line  positions  facing  the  right 
of  the  Division  of  the  Danube  were  captured,  but 
the  action  of  the  left  wing  was  much  hampered  by 
heavy  enemy  artillery  fire.  The  centre  and  the  right 
wing  continued  to  push  on  in  the  direction  of  the 
Lechnitza. 

In  spite  of  the  unfavorable  atmospheric  conditions 
the  Serbian  aviation  displayed  great  activity,  carrying 
on  reconnaissances  in  the  enemy  lines  and  rear,  keep- 
ing up  the  liaison  of  the  infantry,  shelling  the  retreat- 
ing convoys  of  the  enemy  and  generally  acquitting 
itself  brilliantly  in  its  various  missions.  In  addition 
the  aeroplanes  bombarded  the  railway  station  and 
camp  of  Gradsko.  The  fact  that  two  Serbian  pilots 
were  forced  on  account  of  wounds  to  come  down  on 
enemy  territory  and  that  most  of  the  apparatus  re- 
turned riddled  with  bullets  gave  proof  of  the  courage 
of  the  Serbian  aviators. 

In  the  course  of  the  day's  fighting  on  September 
15th  over  3000  prisoners  were  taken  while  33  guns 
were  captured.  The  Bulgarians  in  addition,  rather 
than  surrender  them,  threw  a  large  number  of  guns 
into  the  ravines  in  the  mountains  where  they  could 
not  be  found.  The  losses  for  the  day  were:  17th 
Division  of  the  French  Colonial  Infantry,  1200  men; 
I22d  Division  of  French  Infantry,  500  men;  the  Di- 
vision of  the  Shumadia,  500  men,  and  the  Division 


The  General  Offensive  343 

of  the  Drina,  200  men.  The  other  units  had  sHght 
losses. 

On  September  i6th  the  17th  Division  of  the 
Colonial  Infantry  and  the  I22d  Division  of  French 
Infantry  remained  on  the  conquered  positions.  The 
principal  task  of  the  day  was  entrusted  to  the  Jugo- 
slav Division  which  was  ordered  to  carry  the  Koziak, 
the  most  important  point  of  the  enemy's  second  line. 
The  Division  of  the  Timok  advanced  by  the  ravine  of 
the  Poroy  to  attack  the  Topolatz.  The  Jugoslav  di- 
vision which  had  approached  the  Koziak  during  the 
night  succeeded  about  midday,  after  a  fierce  combat, 
in  carrying  the  18 10  metre  crest  with  its  left  wing 
while  certain  sections  of  its  right  wing,  about  eleven 
o'clock,  got  a  footing  on  the  1825  metre  crest. 

The  enemy  thoroughly  understood  the  great  im- 
portance of  the  Koziak  position  and  sent  reinforce- 
ments to  this  essential  strategic  point  from  all  sides. 

In  the  course  of  the  afternoon  these  reinforcements 
(the  53d  and  8ist  Bulgarian  Regiments)  made  a 
series  of  counter  attacks  on  the  Koziak  and  even  suc- 
ceeded for  an  instant  in  recapturing  the  18 10  metre 
crest. 

But  a  vigorous  attack  by  the  Jugoslav  Division 
drove  them  once  more  from  the  position  and  the 
Serbs  remained  finally  master  of  the  mountain 
summit. 

The  First  Serbian  Army,  after  breaking  through 
the  enemy's  first  line  positions,  continued  its  advance 
with  all  speed.  By  10  o'clock  the  Division  of  the 
Drina  had  passed  the  Gradechnitza  and  directed  its 


344       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

march  on  the  Gradechnitchka  Kossa.  The  retreat  of 
the  enemy  giving  way  before  these  units  was  very 
disordered  and  forced  them  to  abandon  many  of  their 
wounded  and  an  immense  quantity  of  material. 

On  the  left  wing  of  the  Division  of  the  Danube  the 
enemy  offered  obstinate  resistance  in  order  to  cover 
his  retreat  on  Razimbey. 

The  Division  of  the  Morava  was  on  the  march 
toward  Koutchkov  Kamen  and  deployed  in  the  direc- 
tion of  the  slopes  of  Mount  Koziak,  placing  itself  to 
the  right  of  the  Second  Army,  that  is  to  say  between 
the  Jugoslav  Division  and  the  Division  of  the  Drina. 
It  stopped  at  this  point. 

The  First  Army  had  made  an  exceptional  effort  on 
a  very  difficult  terrain,  crushing  the  obstinate  resistance 
of  the  enemy  on  successive  lines,  strongly  forti- 
fied. It  advanced  to  a  depth  of  fifteen  kilometres. 
The  cavalry  division  attached  to  the  First  Army  fol- 
lowed close  on  the  heels  of  the  infantry  awaiting  the 
favorable  moment  to  intervene. 

The  Serbian  aviation  was  again  very  active.  Its 
chief  activity  was  in  the  neighbourhood  of  the  bridge 
of  Razimbey,  where  the  converging  roads  were 
blocked  with  convoys  of  all  kinds,  which  the  aero- 
planes attacked  with  machine  guns  and  bombs.  It 
also  furnished  valuable  information  regarding  the 
movement  of  the  enemy  and  was  able  to  ascertain  that 
he  was  constructing  trenches  in  all  haste  on  the 
Kutchkov  Kamen  and  that  three  enemy  batteries  were 
advancing  from  Poltchichte  on  the  Koziak.  One 
Serbian  pilot  was  wounded  by  a  rifle  bullet. 


The  General  Offensive  345 

The  Serbian  Army  had  succeeded  in  its  mission, 
which  was  to  make  a  breach  in  the  enemy's  centre  and 
then  roll  up  the  Bulgarian  troops  right  and  left  so  as 
to  widen  this  to  such  a  degree  that  the  enemy's  forces 
would  be  split  in  two  parts. 

The  Serbian  troops  marched  without  respite  during 
the  whole  of  the  night  and  all  day  on  September  17th 
kept  forcing  the  Bulgarians  to  further  retreat.  By 
eight  o'clock  in  the  evening  the  Timok  Division  com- 
pleted the  occupation  of  Topolatz  and  approached 
Sutdena  Voda.  The  Jugoslav  Division  in  co-operation 
with  the  Division  of  the  Morava,  after  capturing 
Kutchkov  Kamen,  continued  its  advance  to^  Alsar, 
while  the  divisions  of  the  First  Army  continued  to 
pursue  the  fleeing  enemy.  At  eight  o'clock  in  the 
evening  it  passed  the  Bechichte-Melnitza  line,  while 
the  Drina  Division  at  the  same  hour  reached  the 
Vitolichte-Melnitza  line. 

The  Division  of  the  Morava,  supported  by  the  Jugo- 
slav Division,  at  4:45  p.  m.  captured  the  Kutchkov 
Kamen  and  continued  its  march  toward  the  north.  By 
a  night  march  the  cavalry  division  advanced  beyond 
Poltchichte  while  the  Division  of  the  Danube,  keeping 
the  liaison  with  the  nth  Division  of  Colonial  In- 
fantry, reached  the  bridge  of  Razimbey. 

By  8  p.  m.  on  September  i8th  the  Timok  Division 
occupied  Blatetz  and  continued  to  pursue  the  enemy  in 
the  direction  of  Golulatz.  By  sundown,  the  Jugoslav 
Division,  which  in  the  afternoon  had  captured  and 
burned  the  village  of  Rozden,  reached  Mrejintze  and 
Kanopichte.    The  Shumadia  Division  passed  the  night 


346       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

on  the  Topolatz  and  the  17th  Division  of  Colonial 
Infantry  on  the  Koziak. 

The  division  of  cavalry  of  the  First  Army  sent  a 
brigade  with  a  battery  of  mountain  artillery  via  Polt- 
chichte,  Vitolichte  and  the  massif  of  the  Tchaterna 
toward  Kavadon.  The  commander  of  the  division, 
with  the  2nd  Brigade  and  a  battery  of  field  artillery, 
advanced  on  Razimbey  via  Vitolichte  and  later  re- 
joined the  1st  Brigade. 

The  Drina  and  Morava  divisions  in  spite  of  the  bad 
roads  and  rocky  nature  of  the  ground  continued  to 
push  steadily  forward.  By  night  the  former  divisions 
had  reached  Vitolichte  while  the  advance  guards  of 
the  Morava  divisions  reached  the  Czerna  of  Polochko 
to  the  south. 

On  account  of  the  ever  growing  difficulties  of  the 
terrain  the  Serbian  Headquarters  ordered  the  cavalry 
division  with  the  First  Army  to  be  transferred  to  the 
Second  Army.  In  consequence  on  the  night  of  Sep- 
tember 1 8th  it  was  concentrated  at  Razden  with  orders 
to  take  part  in  the  operations  of  the  Second  Army 
on  the  following  day  in  the  direction  of  Kavadar. 

On  September  19th  solid  bridge  heads  were  estab- 
lished on  the  left  bank  of  the  Czerna  Reka  which 
assured  the  passage  of  the  main  body  of  the  army  in 
the  bend  of  that  river,  from  which  the  enemy's  lines 
of  communication  Gradsko-Prilep  were  threatened  on 
the  one  hand,  and  on  the  other,  the  whole  fortified 
system  of  the  bend  of  the  Czerna  Reka  and  the  region 
of  Monastir. 

The  operations  of  the  Second  Serbian  Army  on  Sep- 


The  General  Offensive  347 

tember  20th  were  only  a  continuation  of  the  preced- 
ing operations  which  were  destined  to  bring  it  to  the 
banks  of  the  Vardar  on  the  east  and  to  the  Czerna 
Reka  on  the  west  between  its  course  and  the  right 
wing  of  the  First  Army. 

With  this  in  view,  the  Division  of  the  Timok 
pushed  forward  its  two  columns  on  the  front  Gornia 
Drabovitza-Barova,  on  which  the  enemy  was  now 
putting  up  a  stronger  resistance  to  the  advance  of  the 
columns  to  the  left  and  less  resistance  to  the  column 
on  the  right.  The  Jugoslav  division  continued  its 
action,  which  had  for  its  objective  the  conquest  of  the 
Drtchevitchko  Brdo,  on  which  its  right  column  was  in 
action  during  the  whole  day,  because  the  enemy  was 
putting  up  a  strong  resistance  in  order  to  protect  the 
Vardar  railway  line. 

The  left  of  this  division  advanced  in  the  direction 
of  Kavadar  and  Vozartzi.  This  column  acted  in 
liaison  with  the  cavalry  division,  which  was  operating 
in  front  of  the  infantry.  In  the  course  of  the  day  it 
seized  the  bridge  at  Vozartzi  which  had  not  been 
destroyed  and  entered  Kavadar.  This  division  cap- 
tured twelve  field  guns. 

As  regards  the  other  divisions  of  this  anTiy  that 
of  the  Shumadia  was  in  the  environs  of  the  village  of 
Glavitch,  while  the  17th  division  of  Colonial  Infantry 
was  in  echelon  in  the  region  of  Mrejintze-Rozden. 

The  terrain  was  excessively  difficult  and  the  roads 
were  in  a  state  of  collapse  which  rendered  the  pro- 
visioning of  the  troops  of  the  Second  Army  almost 
impossible.    The  use  of  motor  trucks  was  out  of  the 


348       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

question.  The  circulation  of  the  camionettes  and 
horse-drawn  vehicles  encountered  the  greatest  difficulty 
though  the  weather  was  dry.  In  general  the  terrain 
was  not  suited  for  military  movements  and  the  repro- 
visioning  of  large  bodies  of  men.  The  Serbian  troops 
displayed  exceptional  energy  and  ability  to  do  without 
many  necessary  things  in  order  to  triumph  over  the 
obstacles  they  encountered. 

On  the  right  of  the  First  Army  the  left  wing  of  the 
division  of  the  Morava,  at  half  past  ten  in  the  morn- 
ing, seized  the  heights  to  the  northeast  of  Godiyak 
on  which,  at  eleven  o'clock,  it  placed  a  battery  of 
mountain  guns.  It  then  pushed  forward  struggling 
against  the  difficulties  of  the  terrain  and  breaking 
down  the  resistance  of  the  enemy,  which  was  weak. 
The  reserve  of  the  division  was  still  on  the  right  bank 
of  the  Czerna  Reka.  About  five  o'clock  the  enemy 
launched  a  counter-attack  on  the  heights  occupied  in 
the  morning  and  succeeded  in  recapturing  one  to  the 
northeast  of  Godiyak,  while  the  height  to  the  west 
remained  in  the  possession  of  the  Serbs.  This  action 
was  carried  out  by  combined  detachments  of  Ger- 
mans and  Bulgarians. 

In  the  course  of  the  day  the  left  column  succeeded 
in  capturing  Galichta  and  the  first  summit  to  the 
north  of  the  village.  It  was  not  possible  to  ascertain 
the  importance  of  the  enemy  effectives.  During  the 
night  the  Serbs  consolidated  the  positions  seized. 

During  the  night  the  commander  of  the  division  of 
the  Morava  was  unable  to  establish  the  liaison  with 
his  right  column.   Dispatches  which  reached  him  later 


The  General  Offensive  349 

announced  that  it  captured  the  positions  to  the  north 
of  the  Pravednik,  on  which  the  advance  guard  passed 
the  night,  while  the  main  body  remained  in  the  village. 

In  order  to  inform  the  commander  of  the  army  of 
the  difficulties  met  by  the  troops  of  the  division  of  the 
Morava  the  general  commanding  that  division  sent 
the  following  description  of  the  country  over  which 
his  right  column  was  marching:  "The  whole  of  this 
country  is  absolutely  deprived  of  all  means  of  com- 
munication. The  distance  which  separates  Polochko 
from  Godiyak  is  only  about  20  kilometres  (13  miles) 
as  the  crow  flies,  but  the  country  is  so  difficult  that 
everyone  loses  himself.  No  night  patrol  sent  out 
has,  up  to  the  present,  returned  so  that  I  have  not 
yet  received  a  single  report  from  my  subordinates." 

The  right  column  of  the  division  of  the  Danube, 
composed  of  two  regiments  and  two  groups  of  field 
artillery,  advanced  on  the  Vepretchani-Sama  Bouka 
line  and  shortly  after  midday  reached  the  latter  posi- 
tions. The  left  column — a  regiment  and  a  group  of 
field  artillery — was  stopped  in  its  advance  by  the 
resistance  which  it  met  with  at  the  bridge-head  on  the 
right  bank.  All  further  movement  was  arrested  by  the 
barrage  fire  of  the  enemy.  Six  groups  of  enemy  artil- 
lery were  observed  in  the  direction  of  Razimbey.  At 
half  past  five  in  the  evening  the  column  had  still  failed 
to  seize  the  bridge-head  so  that  the  nth  division  of 
Colonial  Infantry,  forming  the  neighbouring  column, 
could  not  advance  toward  Techanichte,  both  columns 
being  stopped  by  powerful  enemy  artillery  fire. 

The   right   column   kept    its  position,    however,    in 


350       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

spite  of  a  surprise  attack  delivered  about  eight  o'clock, 
accompanied  by  a  heavy  rifle  and  machine  gun  fire  and 
the  throw^ing  of  hand  grenades. 

The  regiment  at  the  head  of  the  division  of  the 
Drina  crossed  the  Czerna  Reka  shortly  after  nine 
o'clock  in  the  morning  and  continued  its  march  on 
Godiyak.  The  crossing  was  effected  on  two  bridges 
formed  of  captured  ox-wagons.  At  half  past  five  in 
the  evening  the  first  echelon  and  the  artillery  attacked 
the  enemy's  rearguard,  which  still  occupied  the  hill 
without  a  name,  to  the  east  of  Godiyak,  the  pass  near 
it  and  the  upper  crest  of  the  Sama  Bouka.  At  half 
past  five  the  whole  of  the  first  echelon  deployed,  rein- 
forced by  a  battalion.  This  attack,  executed  in  co-op- 
eration with  a  part  of  the  division  of  the  Danube, 
was  forced  to  slow  down  by  the  difficulties  of  the 
ground,  but  it  brought  the  Serbs  very  close  to  the 
enemy  positions.  The  fusillade  did  not  cease  during 
the  whole  night. 

The  Germano-Bulgarian  army  was  split  in  two  and 
it  was  now  a  question  of  rolling  it  up  right  and  left 
in  order  to  thoroughly  isolate  the  two  portions  and 
crush  them  in  detail.  Through  the  gap  thus  made 
poured  the  victorious  Army  of  the  Orient.  The 
knowledge  that  victory  was  in  their  grasp  spurred  the 
Serbian  troops  to  fresh  efforts  and  caused  them  to 
forget  their  fatigue  and  the  terrible  natural  difficulties 
with  which  they  had  to  struggle  in  the  mountainous 
country  in  which  they  were  fighting. 

On  September  21st  the  division  of  the  Morava  cap- 
tured the  Sedan  Chuke  and  the  Sama  Bouka,  but  on 


The  General  Offensive         351 

account  of  insufficient  artillery  preparations  had  to  call 
a  halt.  The  enemy  had  received  considerable  rein- 
forcements and  kept  up  a  heavy  rifle  fire  on  the 
Serbian  right  while  he  tried  to  hold  the  left  wing  in 
check  by  an  intense  artillery  fire.  Finally  the  Serbs 
pushed  a  number  of  small  detachments  across  the 
river.  But  at  the  bridge-head  the  enemy  resisted  ob- 
stinately. Finally  at  eleven  o'clock  in  the  night  the 
right  of  the  Division  of  the  Drina  by  a  vigorous 
attack  seized  the  bridge-head  and  pushed  forward 
rapidly.  The  retreating  enemy  blew  up  over  twenty 
ammunition  depots. 

On  the  following  day  (September  226.)  the  Timok 
division  of  the  Second  Army,  which  the  evening 
before  had  reached  the  Vardar,  pushed  forward 
detachments  to  Davidovo  and  Miletkovo  to  cut  off  the 
retreat  of  the  5th  Bulgarian  Division,  and  occupied 
Kuretmitza  on  the  left  bank  of  the  Vardar.  The  left 
wing  captured  Dubliani  and  the  mountain  crests  to  the 
northeast  and  advanced  on  the  Kiriz-tepe  position,  on 
which  the  enemy  had  begun  to  entrench  himself.  The 
cavalry  division  pushed  on  to  Hudovo.  Here  it 
learned  that  the  2nd  Bulgarian  Infantry  Regiment, 
with  two  batteries  of  field  artillery,  had  taken  up  their 
positions  to  cover  the  retreat  of  the  5th  Division 
which  was  retiring  on  Radovichte. 

The  Jugoslav  division  crossed  the  Czerna  Reka  at 
the  point  where  it  joins  the  Vardar  and  at  Krivolak 
and  pushed  on  toward  Mujantzi  and  Pepelichte.  The 
enemy's  cavalry  offered  feeble  resistance. 

The  enemy,  in  addition  to  the  positions  mentioned 


352       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

above,  held  the  Kolatz  and  the  western  slope  in  the 
direction  of  the  Monastery  of  Tchitchevo  and  posi- 
tions to  the  west  of  the  railway  station  of  Drenovo 
from  which  he  held  Vozartzi  and  the  route  to  Kavadar 
under  the  fire  of  his  artiller}^  After  four  counter- 
attacks, which  all  failed,  the  enemy  retreated  on  Koba. 

The  division  of  the  Shumadia  held  the  Gomia 
Drabovitza-Barovo  line.  The  cavalry  division  con- 
tinued the  pursuit  of  the  enemy  in  the  direction  of 
Chtip  with  a  view  of  reaching  the  summit  between 
Toplik  and  Dragovo  which  would  increase  the  liberty 
of  movement  of  the  Serbian  troops  in  this  sector. 

When  the  second  army  entered  Krivolak  it  cap- 
tured three  locomotives  and  170  wagons  filled  with 
flour  and  salt,  two  new  German  aeroplanes,  two  auto- 
mobiles and  material  of  all  kinds. 

The  Morava  Division  of  the  First  Army  continued 
its  pursuit  of  the  enemy  in  order  to  completely  cut 
his  lines  of  communication  Gradoko-Drenevo-Prilep. 
The  enemy  burnt  all  his  depots  of  provisions  and 
munitions  to  the  west  of  Paitzi.  The  enemy  was  in 
full  retreat  on  all  sides,  such  resistance  as  he  offered 
being  intended  to  cover  the  destruction  of  his  stores 
and  depots.  This  was  carried  out  with  such  precipita- 
tion that  cin  hospital  with  100  wounded  was  burnt 
down,  all  the  patients  perishing  in  the  flames.  A  depot 
for  sick  horses  was  also  destroyed.  This  work  of 
destruction  was  entrusted  to  a  special  corps  of  Ger- 
man troops. 

On  the  23d  of  September  the  Second  Serbian  Army 
continued  its  victorious  march.   At  four  p.  m.,  the  left 


The  General  Offensive  353 

wing  of  the  Timok  division  occupied  Kiriz-tepe.  The 
right  of  the  Jugoslav  division  pushed  forward  to  the 
highest  crest  on  the  Kara-HodzaH  range  while  at  half 
past  five  the  left  column  pushed  on  to  Choba,  the 
enemy  fleeing  in  disorder. 

The  17th  Division  of  Colonial  Infantry  pushed 
forward  to  the  Kolatz-Tchitchevo  line  while  the 
Shumadia  division  moved  on  the  Trennik-Przdevo 
region. 

The  right  of  the  division  of  the  Morava  of  the 
First  Army  forced  the  defile  to  the  north  of  Drenovo 
and  completely  cut  the  enemy's  communications  with 
Gradsko.  This  rapid  advance  surprised  the  enemy,  ac- 
cording to  the  prisoners  taken,  and  prevented  his  con- 
centration at  Drenovo.  They  fled  toward  Prilep  in 
great  disorder.  The  left  flank  of  the  Morava  division 
reached  Paris,  to  the  north  of  the  main  road,  thus 
further  cutting  the  enemy's  communications. 

The  division  then  pushed  on  so  as  to  reach  and 
hold  the  Vardar  from  Gradsko,  in  the  north,  to  the 
Babuna.  In  the  course  of  the  day  it  captured  7  guns, 
12  limbers,  46  horse-drawn  wagons,  6  travelling 
kitchens,  30  horses,  20  oxen,  2  provision  depots  and 
a  large  quantity  of  arms,  munitions  and  other 
material. 

On  September  24th  the  Timok  division  fought  the 
whole  day  to  capture  the  principal  crests  of  the  Beli 
Kaman  but  met  with  obstinate  resistance. 

The  left  wing  of  the  Jugoslav  divisions,  operating 
in  liaison  with  the  cavalry,  had  more  success  and  at 
three   o'clock    in    the   afternoon    carried    the    Toplik- 


354       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

Dragovo  positions,  the  routed  enemy  fleeing  in  the 
direction  of  Chtip,  throwing  away  rifles  and  knap- 
sacks as  they  ran.  This  position  was  defended  by  the 
1 2th  Regiment  of  German  Landsturm.  The  division 
of  cavalry  continued  the  pursuit  until  a  late  hour  in 
the  night.  It  captured  among  others  the  Colonel  com- 
manding the  85th  Bulgarian  regiment  and  his 
adjutant. 

The  booty  captured  by  the  Jugoslav  division  was 
enormous.  It  included  19  guns  (13  heavy  artillery) 
including  one  210  mm.  gun,  30  limbers,  40  to  50  nar- 
row-gauge locomotives,  a  great  number  of  wagons, 
railway  material,  provision  depots  and  engineering 
material. 

The  Morava  division  of  the  First  x^.rmy  in  the 
course  of  the  day  reached  the  Vardar  between  Grad- 
sko  and  the  Vodenitchka  river,  while  the  Drina  divi- 
sion pushed  forward  toward  the  Babuna  on  the  right 
and  Voinitza  and  Golik  on  the  left. 

On  September  27th  the  Timok  division  of  the 
Second  Army,  after  a  fierce  combat,  captured  the  prin- 
cipal summit  of  the  Beli  Kamen  and  the  positions  to 
the  northwest  and  east.  The  capture  of  these  im- 
portant positions  made  the  Serbs  definitely  masters 
of  the  valley  of  the  Vardar.  In  the  course  of  the 
day  the  Second  Army  took  214  prisoners,  3  mountain 
guns,  a  number  of  machine  guns,  5  motor  trucks,  10 
wagons  of  salt,  200  tons  of  wheat,  an  enormous  quan- 
tity of  hay  and  straw  and  a  very  great  number  of 
wagons  and  oxen.  The  fact  that  the  division  of 
Timok  alone  took  prisoners  from  the  4th,  14th,  20th, 


The  General  Offensive         355 

46th,  54th,  65th,  67th  and  84th  Bulgarian  Regiments 
and  from  the  12th  German  Regiment  showed  the  com- 
plete demoralization  of  the  enemy. 

The  following  day,  the  cavalry,  following  close  on 
the  heels  of  the  retreating  enemy,  entered  Kotchane. 
The  Morava  division  of  the  First  army,  advancing 
toward  St.  Nikola,  met  with  resistance  at  the  village 
of  Novo-Selo,  which  was  held  by  German  troops,  but 
after  several  unsuccessful  counter-attacks  they  fell 
back  precipitately. 

The  Division  of  the  Drina  early  in  the  morning 
attacked  Veles.  By  the  evening  they  were  in  the 
vicinity  of  the  town,  of  which  railway  station  and 
other  buildings  were  in  flames.  The  morale  of  the 
enemy  kept  falling  daily.  Even  the  fresh  troops  they 
brought  up  only  put  up  a  mediocre  resistance.  The 
Germans  declared  that  the  Bulgarians  abandoned  them 
and  left  them  to  face  the  Serbs  alone. 

During  the  whole  day  of  the  27th  of  September  the 
victorious  advance  continued.  The  aim  of  the  enemy 
in  holding  the  line  to  the  south  of  St.  Nikola  was  to 
cover  the  only  line  of  communication  with  Bulgaria, 
the  route  from  Kumanovo  to  Kriva  Palanka.  But  the 
Division  of  the  Morava  broke  down  all  resistance  and 
drove  the  Bulgarians  back  in  rout.  It  was,  however, 
when  the  Serbians  occupied  the  line  of  communication 
Kumanovo-Kriva  Palanka  that  the  Bulgarians  felt  the 
full  force  of  the  disaster. 

The  armies  of  King  Ferdinand  and  that  of  his 
German  ally  now  began  to  enter  on  their  death  agony. 


356       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

which  was  prolonged  for  yet  another  forty-eight 
hours. 

On  September  28th  the  Bulgarians  still  put  up  a 
somewhat  obstinate  resistance  on  the  front  Ostrech — 
the  1050  metre  hill — Tzarevo  Selo.  The  advance 
guard  of  the  Jugoslav  division  pushed  forward  toward 
the  latter  town  but  met  with  considerable  resistance 
in  the  villages  in  the  environs.  The  division  of  the 
Morava,  after  capturing  the  St.  Nikola  position, 
reached,  at  four  o'clock  in  the  afternoon,  the  Baslovo- 
Tzutzub  front.  At  St.  Nikola  the  Serbs  captured  4000 
pounds  of  bread  and  a  large  depot  of  rye  and  wheat, 
which  bore  eloquent  testimony  to  the  haste  of  the 
enemy's  retreat. 

The  division  of  the  Drina  resumed  the  pursuit  of 
the  enemy  at  half  past  five  in  the  morning.  It  met 
with  some  resistance  on  the  right  flank  but  soon  con- 
strained the  Bulgarians  to  resume  their  retreat.  The 
left  wing  met  with  no  resistance  to  its  advance  till 
Djurichte  was  reached.  Here  the  enemy  attempted  to 
make  a  stand  but  the  Serbs  carried  the  village  shortly 
before  five  in  the  afternoon  and  continued  their  pur- 
suit of  the  fleeing  enemy. 

On  September  29th,  the  3d  and  5th  Bulgarian  di- 
visions moving  on  Pliatch  Kavitza  left  a  strong  rear- 
guard to  hold  the  line  Ostrech — the  blockhouse  of 
Tzarevo-Selo-Bogdanovatz  and  cover  their  retreat. 
This  force  was  attacked  by  four  battalions  and  two 
batteries  of  artillery  of  the  Jugoslav  divisions  and 
driven  from  its  positions.    The  Jugoslav  division  then 


The  General  Offensive  357 

pursued  its  advance  on  Tzarevo  Selo  and  the  upper 
valley  of  the  Bregalnitza. 

The  division  of  the  Timok  pushed  on  to  Vinitza 
and  Tchavka,  the  main  body  passing  the  night  in  the 
former  town.  The  division  of  the  Shumadia  con- 
centrated to  the  east  of  Kotchane,  sending  forward  a 
detachment  toward  Tzar  and  Vrl. 

The  First  Amiy  also  continued  to  advance  rapidly, 
its  outpost  being  placed  in  the  evening  on  the  Topo- 
lovik-Ketenovo-Vakouf  line.  A  strong  detachment 
was  sent  to  occupy  the  Kuklitza-Vidim-Stratzen,  there- 
by completely  cutting  the  enemy's  communications  be- 
tween Kumanovo  and  Kriva  Palanka.  The  division 
of  the  Drina  all  day  long  kept  driving  the  enemy 
before  it  and  halted  for  the  night  on  the  Rudjentze- 
Ollavoke  Plavina  line,  to  the  south  of  Voinik.  The 
division  of  the  Danube  formed  the  reserve  of  the  First 
Army,  marching  in  echelon  behind  the  division  of  the 
Drina. 

The  divisional  cavalry  of  the  Danube  and  Drina 
divisions  were  directed  on  Alescandrovo  on  the  Skop- 
lie  (Uskub) — Kumanovo  line  in  order  to  cut  the  rail- 
way. 

It  was  the  following  day  that  the  coup  de  grace  was 
administered  to  the  Army  of  King  Ferdinand.  The 
preceding  day  Bulgarian  plenipotentiaries  had  arrived 
at  Salonica  to  sue  for  peace  and  a  few  minutes  before 
midnight  an  armistice  was  signed  putting  an  end  to 
hostilities,  to  go  into  effect  at  midday  of  September 
30th.  As  a  consequence  the  movements  of  the  xA.rmy 
of  the  Orient  on  that  day  up  to  the  hour  of  the  sus- 


358       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

pension  of  hostilities  were  made  up  with  a  view  of 
placing  the  army  in  superior  tactical  and  strategical 
positions. 

The  cavalry  division  and  the  divisions  of  the 
Shumadia  and  Timok  with  the  Jugoslav  divisions 
were  placed  en  cordon  along  the  frontier  of  Bul- 
garia, ready  to  march  into  that  country  if  the  enemy 
should  not  carry  out  the  conditions  of  the  armistice. 

There  still  remained,  of  course,  the  German  and. 
Austrian  troops  not  only  in  Serbia  but  also  in  Al- 
bania. Until  they  either  surrendered  or  were  driven 
from  these  countries  the  mission  of  the  Army  of  the 
Orient  operating  in  Serbia  and  the  Italian  army  ope- 
rating in  Albania  was  not  finished.  This  task  occu- 
pied the  next  six  weeks  and  was  completed  just  about 
the  time  Germany,  seeing  that  with  the  collapse  of 
the  Germano-Bulgarian  army  her  cause  was  irre- 
mediably lost,  sued  for  an  armistice  on  the  Western 
front. 

The  resistance  offered  by  the  retreating  German 
and  Austrian  troops  was  considerable  and  retarded 
the  Serbian  advance  the  more  so  as  they  deliberately 
and  methodically  destroyed  all  the  means  of  communi- 
cation as  they  retreated,  tearing  up  the  railway,  blow- 
ing up  bridges  and  tunnels,  cutting  telegraph  and  tele- 
phone lines  and  removing  or  destroying  all  the  roll- 
ing stock. 

Finally,  however,  on  October  12th,  the  Army  of  the 
Orient  captured  Nish.  The  first  troops  to  enter  that 
city  were  the  French  cavalry  division  and  the  divi- 
sion of  the  Morava.    With  the  capture  of  Nish  the 


The  General  Offensive  359 

Berlin-Constantinople  railway  was  definitely  cut  and 
Turkey  isolated  from  the  Central  Powers.  A  few 
days  later  the  Sultan  sued  for  peace.  The  defection 
of  Turkey  was  followed  by  the  collapse  of  Austria, 
leaving  Germany  single-handed  against  the  world  in 
arms.  The  Kaiser  and  his  generals  saw  the  game  was 
up  and  that  even  if  they  could  hold  the  enemy  in  check 
on  the  Western  front  the  Army  of  the  Orient,  to- 
gether with  the  Italians  and  the  Roumanians,  could 
invade  Germany  by  the  rear. 

They,  therefore,  sued  for  an  armistice.  Thus  the 
war  which  began  in  the  Balkans,  for  the  Balkans, 
ended  in  the  Balkans.  The  brilliant  and  victorious 
campaign  of  the  Army  of  the  Orient  completely  justi- 
fied the  arguments  of  the  "easterners"  and  rendered 
it  doubly  regrettable  that  a  section  of  the  Allies  were 
so  short-sighted  as  to  refuse  to  make  the  effort  eight- 
een months  before.  If  the  Salonica  front  had  been 
reinforced  by  200,000  men  at  the  end  of  1916  or  in 
the  early  months  of  19 17,  the  war  would  have  come 
to  an  end  in  six  months.  That  it  dragged  on  till  19 18 
is  largely  the  fault  of  those  responsible  for  this  short- 
sighted policy. 

The  whole  world  suffered  by  this  terrible  error  but 
most  of  all  Serbia.  During  two  long  years  that  coun- 
try was  handed  over  to  the  tender  mercies  of  a  cruel 
and  ferocious  enemy.  The  story  of  Serbia's  cruci- 
fixion has  yet  to  be  told,  but  what  is  already  known  of 
the  horrors  of  the  Bulgarian  occupation  transcends 
belief. 

But   in   any   case   the   martyred    Kingdom    had    at 


360       From  Serbia  to  Jugoslavia 

least  got  out  of  the  furnace  of  six  years  of  ceaseless 
war  which  had  consumed  the  manhood  of  one  of  the 
bravest  peoples  in  the  world.  Its  armies  had  fought 
from  the  Danube  to  the  frontiers  of  Thrace,  from  the 
Black  Sea  to  the  Adriatic  and  the  ^gean.  It  had  for 
six  long  years  borne  the  burning  heat  of  the  Balkan 
summers  and  the  freezing  cold  of  the  winters.  It  had 
been  driven  into  exile,  but  had  there  reformed  its 
depleted  ranks,  disembarked  on  foreign  soil  and 
forced  its  way  over  every  obstacle  to  the  reconquest 
of  its  beloved  Serbia,  the  indomitable  army  of  the 
"Nation  that  can  never  die." 

But  the  nation  has  had  its  reward.  As  the  fruits 
of  its  victory  eight  million  of  its  brothers-in-race 
rallied  round  the  Serbian  Piedmont  and  Jugoslavia, 
long  a  dream,  has  at  last,  become  a  reality.  Croatia, 
Slavonia,  Dalmatia.  Bosnia,  Herzegovina,  the  Banat 
and  the  Batchka  hailed  King  Peter  as  their  ruler  and 
now  thirteen  million  Jugoslavs  have  once  again  as- 
sumed their  proud  mission  as  the  "Guardians  of  the 
Gate,"  holding  in  their  hands  the  Key  of  the  East. 
Germany's  dream  of  "Mittel-Europa"  and  world  do- 
minion, thanks  to  the  realization  of  Jugoslav  unity, 
has  forever  vanished  like  the  "baseless  fabric  of  a 
vision,  leaving  not  a  wrack  behind."  And  as  long 
as  Jugoslavia,  free  and  independent,  endures,  the  world 
can  sleep  in  peace.     On  ne  passera  pas. 

FINIS 


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